Unfaithful
by OR
Summary: !!!CHAPTER 10 POSTED!!! After doing there best to avoid Max both Alec and Logan realize that they must see her,both for different reasons. Enjoy!
1. The Begining

Max had always tried to be faithful to everybody she was ever involved with. She and Logan had almost promised to only be for each other until they found a cure for the virus and could be together. But. lately her feelings had been shifting. She didn't know why she felt different but she couldn't help it.  
  
~*  
  
"Cindy?" Max called as she entered the apartment. "Are you home?"  
  
"Gee, I didn't think you were ever going to come back." Cindy said exiting her bedroom and embracing Max in a hug. "Where you been?"  
  
"Well, I've been getting around. Logan and Asha drove Alec, Joshua and me to San Francisco." She started.  
  
"Logan drove you to San Francisco?" Cindy asked in her 'are you sure' tone.  
  
"Yeah, when Zack was in town once he gave me a hint on where my sister Jondy was, so I went looking." Max continued.  
  
"Did you find her?" Cindy questioned impatiently.  
  
"No but it was a good trip." Max started to go through the fridge. "I'm starving."  
  
"So basically, you spent three months cruising around San Francisco for no reason?" Cindy sat on breakfast stool and watched Max pile food into her arms, kick the fridge door closed and dump the load on the bench.  
  
"Basically." Max said plainly pulling a knife out of the draw and unscrewing the lid of the peanut butter jar.  
  
"How nice." Cindy stated and picked up a piece of bread that Max had coated in peanut butter and took a large bite.  
  
"Did I lose my job?" Max asked with a mouth full of bread and peanut butter.  
  
"Normal's scared of you, he'd never fire you!" Cindy laughed also with a full mouth.  
  
Max nodded and bumped fists with Cindy.  
  
~*  
  
Logan spent his first night back at his apartment cleaning.  
  
"How's it going?" Asha asked. "Want any help?"  
  
"You can help if you want." Logan said unenthusiastically.  
  
"Hand me a rag." Asha said putting her coffee on the counter, rolling up her sleeves and cracking her knuckles.  
  
Logan tossed her a rag and continued scrubbing out the fridge. "Maybe tomorrow you can help me look for a new apartment."  
  
"Why?" Asha questioned sticking her head above the cupboard that she had just crouched in front of and started emptying.  
  
"I can't keep living here, White knows where I live." Logan said without looking at her.  
  
"That doesn't matter, there are things that you can do to lead him off the trail." Asha said flicking the rag aver her shoulder and standing next to him.  
  
"Really?" He asked with a sarcastic tone and kept working, still without looking at her.  
  
"Yes like changing your name in the phone book and getting a security system or a big scary drooling dog." Asha continued to try to make him feel better.  
  
"Max doesn't like dogs." Logan plainly stated without pausing from his scrubbing.  
  
Asha grabbed the door of the fridge and slammed it shut just missing Logan's fingers.  
  
"Hey." He yelled facing her.  
  
"Not everything in this world revolves around your precious Max!" Asha was yelling rather loud, "You can think about yourself!"  
  
"She keeps me alive." Logan retorted.  
  
"Yet if she gets too close she could kill you!" Asha pulled the rag off her shoulder and threw it at him. "That's really balanced!" She turned and stormed out.  
  
"You don't know anything about it!" He yelled after her.  
  
Just before she slammed the door she screamed back, "Maybe not but I'm expected to pick up the pieces when everything goes wrong!" Then she was gone.  
  
Logan knew that she was right. He remembered the time that she took them to the hospital when he got chicken pox. Logan reopened the fridge, got out a bottle of red wine and proceeded to polish off the whole bottle alone.  
  
~*  
  
Max figured that Alec would probably be looking to get his job back too, ringing him wouldn't hurt.  
  
(Phone conversation)  
  
"Hello?" Alec said picking up the ringing phone.  
  
"It's me." Max said quietly.  
  
"Max? It two o'clock in the morning." Alec said scratching his head.  
  
"I know, I didn't think you'd care." She said without changing her tone.  
  
"I don't, I was just making a point." He started to turn on his stupid charm.  
  
"Shut up." Max said laughing slightly.  
  
"So, to what do I owe this pleasant phone call?" Alec asked, riffling through his fridge for a quarter past two am snack.  
  
"Are you going to see Normal for your job back?" Max asked cutting straight to the point.  
  
"I was thinking about it." Alec answered choosing an apple and taking a bite out of it.  
  
"Are you eating?" Max asked.  
  
"Yep." He said taking another bite.  
  
"It's two o'clock in the morning." She said mimicking him.  
  
"Yes I know, we established that before, back to the topic at hand." Alec said sarcastically.  
  
"Well, are you?" She asked quickly getting impatient.  
  
"Yeah." He said trying to sound defeated. "Why?"  
  
"I was just wondering." Max stated now sounding completely uninterested in a hope to string him along a bit more.  
  
"Just wondering because why?" Alec asked teasing her a bit.  
  
"No reason." Max said trying to sound distracted.  
  
"Don't make me come around there." He said joking around.  
  
"Okay, okay," Max gave in, "I'm going and I don't want to feel like an idiot alone, especially when we can fight for each other."  
  
"Max, that is the sweetest thing that you've ever said to me." He said pretending to cry.  
  
Max was laughing so much at Alec's jokes that Cindy came out of her room wrapped in a silk robe, looking sleepy.  
  
"Do you people ever sleep? Just for a minute?" Cindy asked going to the fridge for a glass of water.  
  
"I gotta go." Max said.  
  
"Okay, see ya." Alec said.  
  
They both hung up the phone.  
  
"Max, trying to sleep." Cindy said pointing at herself. "You spent three months with Logan and you still have to call him a two am?"  
  
"It wasn't Logan, it was Alec." Max said plumping a pillow on the couch.  
  
"You spent three months with him too!" Cindy stated. "Alec?"  
  
"Yep" Max got off the couch and headed to her room.  
  
"Okay." Cindy sounded suspicious.  
  
"It's nothing." Max stated.  
  
"It better not be." Cindy warned.  
  
"It's not!" Max said almost laughing.  
  
"If you say so. Night." Cindy walked back into her room.  
  
"Night." She lost her smile as soon as Cindy was out sight. Max knew that she felt some sort of attraction to Alec. She didn't want to and wasn't going to give into it, she was sure that she was in love with Logan and was going to keep it that way.  
  
~*  
  
Max was planning on climbing into bed and stare at the ceiling until the sun rose, but instead she got dressed and jumped on her bike to cruise around town but even that didn't go according to plan.  
  
~*  
  
Alec seemed to be experiencing one interruption after another. He walked half-naked to the door and swung it open. On the other side was a confused looking Max.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Alec asked more worried than anything else, "Is everything okay?"  
  
"Yeah everything's fine, I was just bored and thought you might be able to entertain me." She said trying to smile.  
  
"Sure, come on in." He stood aside and let her enter.  
  
"Tell me, what is it that you do at this hour?" Max walked around his messy little apartment picking things up and looking everything over.  
  
"Whatever it is that I feel like." Alec answered taking a small snow globe from Max and putting it back on the mantle on top of his fireplace. "How bout you tell me what you're doing here at this hour?"  
  
"Like I said, I'm bored." Max replied picking the snow globe up and sitting on his couch.  
  
"Then, why did you come here, instead of going to Logan's place or whatever?" Alec asked taking the snow globe off her again and placing it on the mantle.  
  
"Because Logan and whatever are human and tend to be asleep at this hour." Max said smartly.  
  
"Right," Alec said retreating to the kitchen. "Care for some wine?"  
  
"Okay then." Max called after him then tried to make herself comfortable on the couch. Alec came back with a bottle of red and two glasses.  
  
Max didn't know that she could even hold a half-decent conversation with Alec let alone a decent conversation with him all night.  
  
~*  
  
Normal was short staffed and he knew it. After the little hostage situation, Normal decided that if he left the transgenics alone then they would leave him alone. He had decided that maybe they weren't so bad after all and that he could live with them. The thing was, he had tried to convince everyone was that he knew that Max and Alec were transgenics, no one believed him, he knew that too, but he pretended anyway.  
  
Max walked smartly into Jam Pony followed closely by Alec. They stopped at Normal's desk and waited for him to turn around.  
  
Normal had four packages in his arms, he turned and saw Max and Alec and jumped, dropping all the packages, "Sweet Jesus, are you trying to kill me?"  
  
"Yes actually." Alec piped up before getting Max's elbow in his ribs.  
  
"How's it going?" Max asked.  
  
"I-I -I'm, I'm fine." Normal stuttered.  
  
"That's great," Max said reaching across the desk to pat him on the head.  
  
Normal flinched, 'oh my god she gonna kill me' were the words than sailed through his head when she first stretched her arm out towards him.  
  
"Normal, we want our jobs back." Max said clearly enjoying him being scared out of his wits as her hand slid to the back of his neck.  
  
"O-okay," Normal said secretly praying that she wouldn't hurt him.  
  
"Thanks." She took her hand back, spun, grabbed Alec by the collar and dragged him along behind her.  
  
"Nice work." Alec complimented as she pulled him to the lockers. "Thanks for bringing me along I did a lot."  
  
"Shut up!" Max said aggressively.  
  
"It has recently come to my attention that you spend the best part of you life telling me to shut up." Alec said leaning against a locker as she riffled through hers.  
  
"Well if you did it every once in a while then I wouldn't have to tell you." She smiled at him sweetly, slammed her locker shut and went to collect a package off Normal.  
  
"Ouch." Alec said to himself before walking over to Normal's desk where Max had successfully left him shaken once again. "She's not that bad."  
  
"Shit, no I mean crap, no I mean shit!" Normal jumped again when Alec appeared behind him.  
  
"Relax." Alec said seriously, "She's just stringing you along because she can. Just go back to being the way you were with her before."  
  
"She might kill me!" Normal was shaking and sounded worried.  
  
"Max? Never, she wouldn't hurt anything that didn't hurt her first." Alec stated.  
  
"But she's a transgenic." Normal said still quite worried and showing it.  
  
"She's always been a transgenic and she's never done anything before." Alec kept defending. "Plus, so am I."  
  
Normal didn't say anything else, he just watched Alec pick up a package, grab a bike and head out on a delivery.  
  
~*  
  
"I think that White got his hands on a few transgenics." Max called as she entered Logan's apartment.  
  
"Please excuse me a moment." Logan said to the people looking around his apartment and went into the kitchen where Max was emptying his fridge. "Can we discuss this later?"  
  
"No, I don't think we can. I leave town for a couple of months and he thinks that he's free to pop off a few of my brothers and sisters." Max said angrily with a mouthful of apple.  
  
"Look I'm in the middle of something here." Logan started.  
  
"Perhaps we should come back another time, Mr. Cale." Said a middle age Chinese man as he entered the kitchen with his young wife.  
  
Max just stood perfectly still as though something were about to attack her and said nothing just wondered to herself about who these people were.  
  
"That won't be necessary. Max please wait in my office." Logan said before leaving her to tend to his visitors.  
  
Max decided to go through the stuff on his computer. She found stuff on Zack and herself and Alec. But what surprised and angered Max the most was that Logan had stuff on his computer about Jondy. Max was furious, she wanted to hit someone. So making sure that her glove was perfectly in place, she wiped it over her shirt a couple of time to make sure her DNA wasn't on it and stormed into the room where Logan was discussing something with his guest. She walked straight up to him and slapped him hard on the left side of his face.  
  
He nearly fell flat but managed to keep his balance by grabbing the corner of a sideboard. He looked up to see two confused looks on the faces of his guests and to hear Max slam the door closed. "I'm sure it was worth a lot more before I met her." He said rubbing his face where Max slapped him.  
  
~*  
  
Max was still in a bad mood when she arrived back at work, she exercised this by throwing her bike down, slamming her locker door and storming off.  
  
Cindy could see that something was wrong, she knew that she was a fool if she couldn't.  
  
She followed Max down to local park that was full of screaming children and homeless people sleeping under benches.  
  
"What's wrong Boo?" Cindy asked stopping next to her. "Tell Original Cindy."  
  
"He lied to me." Max whispered. She wouldn't cry though, she had already decided that she had cried too many tears for him.  
  
"Who?" Cindy questioned.  
  
"Logan." Max replied quietly.  
  
"Bout what," Cindy asked, "He's not creepin with that blond thing is he?"  
  
"No, no." Max assured her, "He just forgot to mention that he knew where my sister was and that he's been in contact with her and that she lives in New York not Seattle."  
  
"How did you find out?" Cindy was full of questioned. She didn't know if she was being nosey or not but it was more out of concern for her friend than anything else.  
  
"I was screwing around with his computer." Max replied.  
  
"Okay." Cindy processed the information in her head. "Maybe that was a bad idea, what did you do?"  
  
"I slapped him, really hard." Max laughed at how stupid she'd reacted.  
  
"What's so funny?" Cindy asked shocked at her friend, "You just smacked you boys eyes into the back of his head and you're laughing!"  
  
"I'm so stupid!" Max laughed harder.  
  
"Damn straight." Cindy put her arm around Max and laughed with her.  
  
~*  
  
Logan was lying on his couch with a bag of frozen peas on his face when Asha entered the room.  
  
"My God, what happened to you?" She asked, clearly shocked.  
  
"Max happened." Logan stated rolling off the couch and standing. He removed the peas from his face and watched as Asha flinched.  
  
"Ouch!" Asha exclaimed, then started to laugh.  
  
"What?" Logan asked angrily. "This isn't funny!"  
  
"Have you looked at that thing?" She asked, "She's hit you so hard that you've got her hand outlined on your face."  
  
Logan headed quickly towards a mirror. "Shit!" He yelled, "Shit, look what she did." He grabbed his coat and headed for the door.  
  
"Where are you going?" Asha called after him.  
  
"Jam Pony." He yelled back and slammed the door.  
  
"Wait for me." Asha yelled grabbing her coat and running after him.  
  
~*  
  
Max had calmed herself and got back to the task at hand which was delivering package. Mentally she was planning her apology to Logan.  
  
Logan stormed into Jam Pony with Asha in tow.  
  
"Where's Max?" He asked one worker who passed him.  
  
"I don't know man." He said backing off.  
  
Max who had heard her name mentioned had come out from the locker and stood facing him with her arms folded.  
  
He saw her and started toward her, as her reached to grab her she stepped back to avoid contact. "Look what you did to me!" He yelled pointing at his face.  
  
"You kept Jondy from me!" She yelled back at him.  
  
"You went through my computer files!" Logan pointed aggressively at her.  
  
"You ignored me!" Max yelled scoffing.  
  
"You interrupted me!" He said putting his hands on his hips.  
  
"I came to tell you that I found a dead transgenic." Max realized that she had completely forgotten about the dead transgenic. "I'm sorry."  
  
"I'm sorry too." Logan whispered  
  
Unknown to them, they had an audience. The audience clapped and cheered when the apologies came.  
  
Asha, who was now pissed off, stormed out of Jam Pony.  
  
"Tell me about these dead transgenics." Logan said taking her gloved hand in his and pulled her out of her work place.  
  
"Well." 


	2. Cat Fight

Max didn't have time to think about herself. Logan was moving house so she was helping with that, the dead transgenic was also taking up a lot of time, Alec just got himself arrested for breaking into some rich person's place, and for a little bit of fun she still had to show up for work everyday.  
  
~*  
  
"Ah, ah, missy you're over two hours late!" Normal exclaimed when Max walked into Jam Pony.  
  
"What happened to being afraid of me Normal?" Max asked raising her eyebrows at him.  
  
"Alec talked me out of it." Normal replied with confidence as though he had spent the whole week working up to it and felt proud of himself.  
  
"Alec hey?" Max nodded and smiled smartly. "Well during my lunch break I have to go bust his ass out of jail so don't think that the sun shines out of him."  
  
"Why?" Normal asked shocked.  
  
"He tried to rip off some ones place." Max said grabbing the package that Normal held in his stunned hands and left.  
  
~*  
  
Max strolled into Logan's new apartment with Alec in tow.  
  
Asha looked up from the box of pots and pan that she was unpacking. "How'd it go Max?" She asked casually.  
  
"Here he is." Max said presenting Alec and then letting him wander off and explore Logan's new living quarters.  
  
"Holy shit!" Came Alec's loud exclamation from the next room. "This place could house Logan, me, Joshua, Original Cindy, You and You." Alec said reentering the room and pointing at Max and then Asha.  
  
"Well then I guess that Logan will have to have a couple of slumber parties then." Asha laughed. "Maybe I can talk him into it."  
  
Max smiled and shook her head slightly.  
  
Asha watch Max as she eyed Alec. She watched, as Max looked him over from head to toe. When he moved into the next room, Asha watched as she stopped herself from following him.  
  
Max turned to face Asha, "How's he settling in?"  
  
"Oh, you know," Asha started, "He's excited about it. It is larger than his last place. He's been setting up he office mostly, like it's the most important thing."  
  
"As long as he's happy, right?" Max said leaning against the wooden counter next to the stove and stared at the walkway that Alec had disappeared through.  
  
"Yes, you're right," Asha began, "Personally I would fix my bedroom up first so I had somewhere to sleep and then worry about everything else later but I suppose that Logan isn't like that." When Asha saw that Max wasn't listening to a word she said she tried a different topic. "Then I'd probably strip down to my bare ass and introduce myself to the neighbors."  
  
Max frowned and let what she just heard sink in, she looked at Asha and said, "What?"  
  
"Max, what's going on?" Asha asked putting one arm on the counter and the other on her hip.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Max wasn't ready for the question, "Nothing's wrong."  
  
"Max we're friends, right?" Asha questioned suddenly aware that she had never asked herself about what sort of relationship she had with Max.  
  
"Yeah, I guess." Max was confused. Asha was really Logan's friend, not hers.  
  
"Well. I guess that what I'm trying to say is that you can talk to me if you ever need to. Okay?" Asha struggled with that more than she would have liked to.  
  
"Okay, then." Max was even more confused now, "Ar, same here."  
  
"Cool." Asha said.  
  
The two of them sort of stood awkwardly for a few minutes and shifted uncomfortably.  
  
Max moved her eyes around the room and along the floor. "Um," She started to move she shuffled from foot to foot and the headed for the exit, "Alec!" She yelled.  
  
Asha bent down on the floor and continued to put pots in the cupboard she listened as Alec obediently follow Max out of the apartment.  
  
"Shit." Max yelled as she nearly walked directly into Logan at the front door. If that happened it would be the end of Logan. Max pushed herself back from him rather quickly.  
  
Max would have ended ass up on the floor but Alec stepped behind her and caught her in his arms. "You right?"  
  
"Yes!" Max said shoving him off and turning to Logan, "See you later."  
  
"Bye." He responded watching her leave closely followed by Alec.  
  
"Don't you know how to be nice?" Alec asked as he followed her to her bike.  
  
"I was never trained to be nice!" Max yelled back at him.  
  
"The least you could do is try!" Alec yelled louder than she did.  
  
"Why? So I can be looked down on and hunted for being a transgenic. No thank you!" She got on her bike and rode off.  
  
"I'll have you Max Guevara." He whispered as he watched her ride off.  
  
~*  
  
At Jam Pony, Max entered to find Original Cindy and Sketchy in a heated argument. It wasn't uncommon but sounded really unpleasant. So to keep her head, Max decided to stay out of the way and headed for her locker.  
  
"Well, if it isn't our little cat burglar." Normal stated as Alec strolled into Jam Pony.  
  
"She told you?" Alec asked as if he had the biggest violation known to man done against him.  
  
"What's wrong Boo?" Cindy asked stepping up next to Alec, "You talk as though some one launched a dirty pair of your underwear up a flag pole for the whole world to see."  
  
"She may as well have." Alec said angrily storming off.  
  
"Oh, I'd say he's in a bad mood." Cindy remarked as she and Normal enjoyed the display, as Alec chucked a tantrum.  
  
~*  
  
Since Alec didn't see Max at all for the rest of the day, he decided to pay her a visit at home.  
  
He entered her apartment and looked around for signs of life.  
  
Max exited her room dressed in tight leather pants and a tank top, finished with her leather jacket.  
  
"How many cows died to make that outfit?" Alec asked leaning against the closed door of her apartment.  
  
"Alec?" She said first surprised and then annoyed, "What are you doing here?"  
  
"You told them that I was arrested!" Alec yelled at her.  
  
"I was running out of things to tell them, plus the truth doesn't hurt that much." Max said smartly then moving towards the door that Alec was still firmly pressed against. She reached for the handle but Alec wouldn't move. "What the hell are you doing? I'm going out!"  
  
"Oh really, I don't care!" Alec said bitterly without budging.  
  
"What are you going to keep me hostage in my own home?" Max asked getting really pissed off.  
  
"Maybe." Alec said acting like a snob an sticking his nose I the air  
  
Max actually found this quite amusing and raised her eyebrows at him. "Alec, I don't get why you're so cut over this. So what, I told them that you got arrested, big deal, you'll get over it. Now don't make me hurt you. Get out of the way!"  
  
Alec didn't want to move but some thing inside him made him move any way.  
  
"Come on then," Max sighed and curled her little finger around his, "Come to Crash with me."  
  
He let himself be pulled along by her. He just enjoyed the pleasure of her hand in his and they walked silently.  
  
~*  
  
At Crash, Max and Alec joined the rest of the crew playing pool out the back. Logan was playing Original Cindy and getting his ass whipped.  
  
Asha arrived back from the bar with two pitchers of beer in her hands and greeted them, "Hey guys what's happening?"  
  
"Nothing," Max started, "Alec tried to keep me under house arrest but I managed to talking him into fun with the rest of us."  
  
"Funny." Alec mumbled bitterly.  
  
The three of them stopped and turn when the others started cheering. Cindy had just won the game. She ran around giving everybody high fives and then put out her hand and let Logan off load the cash.  
  
Alec left Max and Asha to talk to Sketchy.  
  
"Max, what did you mean when you said that Alec tried to keep you under house arrest?" Asha asked finally letting her curiosity get the better of her.  
  
"Oh, nothing," Max started, "He wasn't in a very good mood and was angry at me for telling Normal that he was in jail."  
  
Logan spotted Max and started to move over to where she and Asha were talking.  
  
"Is there anything going on between the two of you?" Asha asked.  
  
"Me and Alec," Max was surprised that she would even raise that question, "God no! What on Earth made you ask that?"  
  
"I've seen the way you look at him." Asha started but was interrupted.  
  
"Look at who." Logan asked inviting himself to join the conversation.  
  
"You sweetie." Max replied stroking a gloved hand down his arm. "Can you get me some beer?"  
  
"You are so fake," Asha whispered hurriedly, "You don't deserve him."  
  
"I'd like to see you try and get him!" Max whispered violently back at her.  
  
"At least I can touch him!" Asha lashed out at her.  
  
"I bet that's not all you'll try!" Max retorted.  
  
"You bitch." Asha yelled and went to slap her.  
  
Max blocked the blow with her hand. "I think you're forgetting who I am."  
  
"I don't care if you're the freakin Terminator." Asha launched another fist at Max.  
  
Max blocked it again determine to keep her cool and not harm Asha.  
  
This time Asha grabbed a hold of Max's hair and pulled it hard.  
  
Max poked Asha violently in the stomach but she wouldn't let go of Max's hair.  
  
Cindy had noticed Asha and Max going for it and stepped in to stop the catfight. "Hey, stop it the two of you."  
  
"Shut up," Asha screamed at her and threw a punch in Cindy's direction. Asha managed to connect her fist with Cindy's jaw. It hurt her fist like hell and caused her to pull harder on Max's hair.  
  
Max couldn't stand the hair pulling anymore. She brought her arm down hard on Asha's.  
  
Asha screamed and let go of her hair. She stood up straight gripping her arm. She did however manage to get her foot to meet Max's shin before Max's clenched fist smacked her across the left eye and knocked her out cold.  
  
Max only then realized that the crew had been gripping at the two of them to stop fighting. Everybody that is, except Logan and Alec.  
  
Logan was being held back by Alec before he got his hands on Max and ended up dead. Logan owed his life to Alec and he knew it but didn't want to admit it.  
  
~*  
  
The crew departed then. Max and Alex helped a frazzled Cindy back to Max's apartment. Whilst Logan hauled Asha back to place.  
  
Asha sat on Logan's couch with ice wrapped in a wet washer on her quickly bruising eye.  
  
"What the hell happened?" Logan asked sitting on the coffee table in front of Asha.  
  
Asha saw this opportunity to blame Max and hopefully get someone one her side. "I didn't do anything and the next thing I know she's throwing punches at me so I grabbed her hair. I didn't mean to hit Cindy, she was in the way."  
  
Logan watched as she nursed her right arm. "What's wrong with your arm?"  
  
"Oh, I think it was just jarred or some thing from where Max hit it." Asha replied looking at her arm, she could hardly move it.  
  
"Let me have a look." Logan said kneeling on the floor and taking her arm. He tried to extent it out straight but stopped when Asha cried out. "I'm taking you to the doctor."  
  
"No, it's nothing." Asha said brushing off his plot.  
  
"Is it really?" He said poking her arm and again she cried out. "I think it's broken and you're going to the doctor."  
  
"Fine you win!" Asha said angrily climbing to her feet and following Logan out to the car.  
  
~*  
  
At Max and Cindy's place. Alec got out some ice and refilled the ice trays while Max made sure Cindy still had all of her teeth and put her in bed.  
  
"She's almost asleep." Max said reentering the kitchen after settling Cindy in with some ice on her swollen jaw.  
  
"How are you?" Alec asked looking at the scratch on the right side of her face. He gently ran his fingers over it.  
  
Max winced a bit but she didn't know if it was from the pain or from Alec's hand running down he face. She hesitantly looked into his eyes, she was afraid of who she see in there.  
  
"What?" Alec whispered looking back into her eyes.  
  
"Who are you Alec?" Max asked without breaking eye contact.  
  
"You know who I am." Alec said slipping his hand behind her neck and pulled her close.  
  
"I don't think I do." She said wanting to fall into his arms and let him take her.  
  
"I think I'm falling for you." Alec whispered moving his mouth to hers.  
  
Just before their lips met and frantic rapping on the door reminded Max that she had a boyfriend.  
  
She swung the door open and Logan came rushing in.  
  
"Are you okay? Is Cindy okay? Are either of you hurt?" Logan asked looking over her trying to resist grabbing her.  
  
"We're fine Logan," Max tried to calm him. "How's Asha?"  
  
"I just dropped her off at the hospital and quickly came round here to make sure you're alright." Logan said taking a few deep breaths.  
  
"Hospital!" Max exclaimed becoming panicked herself.  
  
"Yes," Logan replied, "You managed to break her arm!"  
  
"Opps." Max said biting her bottom lip, "Will you tell her that I'm deeply sorry?"  
  
"Yes, I can do that." Logan said taking a seat on Max's couch.  
  
Alec took the opportunity to get a word in while they were both taking a breath, "Max, I'm gonna head home now. I'll see you at work tomorrow."  
  
"Okay then," Max started, "Thanks heaps for your help tonight, I really appreciate it."  
  
If Logan saw some thing pass between them he choose to ignore it. "I guess that I should go and get Asha from the hospital." He got up to leave.  
  
"Okay then, take care." Max said letting him out.  
  
"Bye." And with that he too, was gone.  
  
Max was left the only conscious person in her apartment. She suddenly found herself wishing that Alec didn't leave. What would have happened if Logan didn't come over at that moment? What would have happened if Logan hadn't come over at all?  
  
Max gave up on trying to think of reasons why Alec had done that. Done what? Every thought brought up new questions.  
  
Max got undressed and climbed into bed. She stared at the ceiling, which wasn't an uncommon occurrence for Max these days.  
  
She could feel her relationship with Logan was going nowhere and the pull of Alec.  
  
Max put a pillow over her head and very, very slowly drifted off to sleep.  
  
She dreamed of Alec. She and Alec were together on a beautiful tropical island. She never wanted to wake up. She didn't want to leave Alec. But Original Cindy woke her up at the same time every morning.  
  
Max didn't mind going to work today, she knew that she would get to see Alec there. 


	3. Discovery

Now that Logan moving was out of the way and Alec was out of jail. Max spent her time trying to find out where these dead transgenics were coming from.  
  
"They seem to be falling out of the sky!" Logan said looking at his computer rather frazzled.  
  
"What?" Max asked officially confused.  
  
"You heard the man, it's raining transgenics!" Alec unexpectedly joined the conversation, making Logan jump and Max try to hold back laughing.  
  
"Not raining them." Logan said calmly trying to regain his composure. "Just. they're appearing out of nowhere!"  
  
"So, do you know where to start?" Alec asked trying to sound interested.  
  
"No." Logan replied try to pay as little attention to him as possible.  
  
"Well, do you have any thoughts on where to start?" Alec continued.  
  
"No, I do not," Logan lost his temper, "What are you even doing here?"  
  
"Logan," Max said slightly disappointed that he couldn't keep his cool against Alec.  
  
"Hey man I didn't know I was crashin a party!" Alec retorted.  
  
"Why don't you crawl back into the hole you came out of?" Logan suggested.  
  
"Can't, Max burnt it to the ground!" Alec got the last word in before Max interrupted.  
  
"That's enough!" She yelled above them. "You to are worse than Asha!" Max added trying to make it clear that the punch up a few days ago was not her fault.  
  
"Sorry Max." Logan said turning once again to punch at the keyboard.  
  
"Sorry Mum." Alec mocked before Max picked up a lone coffee cup off Logan's desk and threw it at him. He ducked just in time to miss the flying projectile, it hit the wall and showered him in fragments of broken china.  
  
Logan sat up straight and spun around to observe the scene going on behind him.  
  
"What the hell was that for?" Alec screamed at Max.  
  
"Opps!" Max laughed looking at her distraught friend.  
  
"You will be paying for that!" Alec threatened.  
  
"Not likely." Max shot back at him.  
  
"If you're going to fight," Logan butt in, "Can you go outside?"  
  
"We're not going to fight!" Max said without letting her guard down against Alec.  
  
Alec crossed the room to where Max was standing.  
  
He moved before Max was ready for him to so he was always one step ahead of her.  
  
He grabbed her by the arm and threw her over his shoulder. He was careful to make sure he didn't get Max's boot in his face and started for the door of Logan's ground level apartment.  
  
"Put me down!" Max screamed trying to kick him but he wrapped an arm around her legs to prevent her from moving them. "Bitch" She screamed at him.  
  
Logan jumped out of his chair and followed Alec as he carried a wriggling Max towards the exit of the building.  
  
Once out side Alec launched Max into a dumpster, "See I told you that I'd get you back." He looked over the edge into the dumpster where an angry Max tried to calm herself.  
  
Max sat up and grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close so only he could hear. "This is war now, do you understand, sweetie?"  
  
"Loud and clear, honey." Alec retorted standing helpless only inches from her face. He was thinking about kissing her but he knew that it would kill Logan.  
  
She shoved him off, Jumped out of the dumpster and headed back into Logan's apartment. The whole way she was mumbling to herself that she was gonna get him bad.  
  
~*  
  
Logan gave her a theory and sent her home to clean herself up before heading over to Crash for the crew's little get together.  
  
~*  
  
Max arrived at Crash showered, and leathered. She spotted Alec as soon as she joined the crew and smiled at him sweetly to show that she had planned her revenge.  
  
"Are these my eyes." Cindy asked Max when she saw her eyeing Alec.  
  
"Show me." Max said jokingly grabbing Cindy's face and inspecting her eyes, "Yes I believe that they are."  
  
"I mean what's the dealio with you and hot boy?" Cindy asked indicating to Alec with her beer bottle.  
  
"There's not dealio!" Max exclaimed.  
  
"Then why are you eyeing each other like you got so big secret?" Cindy asked suspiciously and put one hand on her hip.  
  
"He's waiting for me to make my move." Max said with out taking her eyes off him.  
  
"Your move?" Cindy was now officially interested.  
  
"Yep." Max stopped at that.  
  
"What on Earth is going on?" Cindy questioned rather confused.  
  
"He threw me in a dumpster." Max said still with her eyes fixed on Alec.  
  
"A dumpster?" Cindy said in disbelief. Then she saw Logan enter Crash. "Oh, here comes your boy."  
  
Max stopped looking at Alec and swung around to see Logan approaching them. She turned to see that Alec was gone. "Damn, I let him get away!"  
  
"Hey Max, Cindy." Logan greeted them.  
  
"Hey Logan." Max said, "I'll be back in a minute." She rushed over to Sketchy was standing.  
  
"What's going on?" Logan asked Cindy as they watched Max rush off.  
  
"Well," Cindy began, "apparently Alec threw Max in a dumpster."  
  
"Yeah, I know I was there." Logan cut her off.  
  
"Well, now Max is going after revenge, I think it's just a game but it's gonna be good." Cindy said sitting at a table and offering Logan a beer that he scooped up.  
  
"Where'd Alec go?" Max asked Sketchy when she reached him.  
  
"He said something about going somewhere and then told me tell you that he went home." Sketchy mumbled clearly well on his way to being completely sloshed.  
  
"Sketchy," Max started grabbing him by the collar, "Think, where did he say he was going"  
  
"I can't say." Sketchy said smartly as if keeping a secret for Alec would be the best thing that he ever did for humanity.  
  
"Oh, yes you can." Max tried to convince him.  
  
"No." Sketchy said firmly.  
  
"Do I have to take you outside and beat you to a bloody pulp?" Max asked knowing the answer already.  
  
"He went to your place." Sketchy gave in.  
  
"Good man Sketch." Max let him go and ran off, "Gotta go." She yelled as she ran past Logan and Cindy.  
  
"Max!" Logan and Cindy managed to call in unison as she ran past, when she didn't stop they shrugged their shoulders and went back to their beers.  
  
~*  
  
Max pulled up on her motor cycle wide-eyed and furious. "I'm gonna kill him!" She yelled as she observed her underwear strung across the outside of her building by a rope pinned from the window of someone she didn't even know.  
  
Alec stuck his head out the window and called to her, "How do you like my masterpiece?"  
  
"You are so dead!" She yelled in a rage, "I'm gonna burn you house down while you're asleep in it!"  
  
"You don't mean that!" He yelled back at her.  
  
"Like hell I don't!" Max screamed kicking stones on the pavement and then running into the apartment hell bent on getting him back.  
  
"No!" He yelled when Max started running.  
  
~*  
  
A dark figure stood in the alley between to abandoned buildings. The figure had just followed a young male transgenic into the alleyway where it was hell bent on killing the boy.  
  
The transgenic sensed something, no, someone behind him and whirled around ready to fight.  
  
Before he could do anything to save him self, there were several explosions that lit up the whole alleyway.  
  
Three shots and the transgenic was dead. The figure walked over to check for a pulse. Satisfied when there wasn't one, it left the body where it lay and left the alley quickly.  
  
A homeless man jumped out from where he was hiding in amongst some cardboard boxes and realized that he was just the only witness to a murder. He ran to a phone box and called the police.  
  
~*  
  
At Crash, the talking and music ceased when Max shoved a butt naked Alec in the front door.  
  
People started making stupid comments and laughing uncontrollable.  
  
"Oh my God, Max!" Cindy yelled, not knowing what to do so she covered her eyes first.  
  
Logan didn't know what to say, so he joined Cindy in covering his eyes.  
  
"Guess I win." Max whispered in his ear, slapped him hard on the ass and walked over to the bar. "Free beers for all."  
  
Every body started cheering and forgot about Alec.  
  
Max dropped a big roll money on the counter and went to join Cindy and Logan while Alec fled.  
  
"Boo, where on Earth did you find that money?" Cindy asked in disbelief.  
  
"Alec's pants." Max laughed clinking glasses with Cindy and started to drink.  
  
"Why did you do that." Logan asked with a serious tone.  
  
"Cause," Max started as Cindy and Logan listened intently, "He hung my underwear up out side the building for the whole world to see.  
  
"Oh, well that explains it." Cindy said grabbing the pitcher in the middle of the table and heading for the bar.  
  
"I don't like this game Max!" Logan said calmly when Cindy had left the table.  
  
"It's not a game." She stated, "It's revenge."  
  
"You shouldn't have thrown the coffee cup at him!" Logan said angrily.  
  
"Oh, sorry bout that by the way!" Max said sincerely.  
  
Logan's phone rang in his pocket, he pulled it out and answered it. "Yep, Matt hi." There was a pause as Logan listened to details. "Okay thanks." He hung up.  
  
"What's going down?" Max asked.  
  
"Matt, said that the homicide unit just arrived at an alley on Roderick street in sector two." Logan gave her details. "A homeless man just witnessed a murder..."  
  
Max cut him off, "And it was a transgenic."  
  
"Yep." Logan confirmed. "Do you want to head down there?"  
  
"Yeah," Max said slightly distraught. "Who the hell is doing this?"  
  
~*  
  
"Matt!" Logan called when he saw Matt.  
  
Matt came over to the rope and let Logan and Max into the crime scene. "Male, right now we're guessing about twenty-four years of age, barcode on the back of his neck." He reported to them.  
  
"Where's the witness?" Logan asked before Max could.  
  
"They've taken him down to the station so he can give a full statement." Matt continued.  
  
"Did he give you a description?" Max asked impatiently.  
  
"Yeah," Matt flipped through the notes on the clipboard he had picked up only moments earlier. "He assumed that the murder was a female, he said that it didn't have the build to be a man. He said that she was dressed in dark clothing with a hooded jacket. Couldn't see hair color. And the murder weapon was a gun, which you can see when you look at the body. Who ever it was, managed to make and great mess of this kid but didn't leave any evidence. No weapon, no fingerprints, there isn't even a footprint."  
  
"There was nothing else?" Max asked getting upset, "Nothing at all?"  
  
"No sorry," Matt said flipping through the notes, "Logan, I'll call you if we get anything else."  
  
"Thanks Matt." Logan said turning and leaving with Max. "We'll get to the bottom of this Max. I promise."  
  
"Thank you." She looked into his eyes and could see the love in them. She wanted to return it but she couldn't find it in herself. She knew that he was going to get hurt. She wanted to spare him but knew she couldn't. "I'm gonna go." She turned and walked away.  
  
Logan was just left to watch her back as she walked away from him. He knew that something was going on. He didn't want to admit it but he knew that she was slipping away from him. He sighed and got into his car and headed home.  
  
~*  
  
Logan sat down at his computer and readied himself for and Eyes Only broadcast. 3,2,1. "This is an Eyes Only broadcast, the cable hack will last for exactly sixty seconds it cannot be traced, it cannot stopped and it is the only free voice left in the city. Some one has been going around killing transgenics. These people are innocent and have done nothing wrong. They are human like everybody and should be treated with the same respect. Transgenics beware, your lives maybe under threat." He ended the broadcast and moved to his couch. Where he greeted pictures of 'The Late Show', with David Letterman.  
  
~*  
  
Max entered her apartment and flicked on the light. She jumped ten mile in the air when she saw Alec sitting on her counter.  
  
"What?" Max started, "Have you left a body in my bed?"  
  
"No." Alec said smartly swinging his legs.  
  
Max eyed him suspiciously, and walked to the window. Her underwear weren't hanging out there again, what's he up to? She asked herself.  
  
"Come here." Alec said holding out his hand.  
  
Max looked his hand over and the reluctantly took it.  
  
He led her out of her apartment and up onto the roof of the building. "Look," he said pointing up at the crystal clear sky.  
  
Max stared at the sky, it was beautiful and black, there were a few white stars but other wise it was empty.  
  
Alec wrapped his arms around her waist, he felt her quickly tense.  
  
She moved around to face him and put her hands on the back of his neck. "What is this Alec?" She asked letting him pull her close to him.  
  
"This is payback." He said locking his lips to hers.  
  
Max couldn't fight Alec off any more. She kissed him back for a moment then let herself be held in his arms. She listened to his heart and closed her eyes.  
  
"I care about you Max." He whispered in her ear. Although she didn't reply, he knew that she was listening, she was just processing it all.  
  
~*  
  
Logan was half-asleep when the phone rang. He was considering leaving it to ring and let the machine get it but instead he managed to sit up and peel himself off the couch.  
  
"Hello," he said in the phone and wait for a reply.  
  
"Logan? It's me." The voice said.  
  
"Matt?" Logan asked. Rubbing his head with slight confusion as to why Matt was being so sly.  
  
"Yeah, we've good some new information." He said keeping his voice low so that the rest of the department couldn't her that he was leaking information to an outside source, especially since the guy on the outside worked for Eyes Only.  
  
Logan was alert now. "What have you got for me?" He asked Matt sounding very intrigued.  
  
"Well," Matt began, "Firstly let me tell you that there won't be an investigation."  
  
"Why the hell not?" Logan asked developing a deep anger.  
  
"Because Logan, the deaths are all transgenic," Matt gave him the excuse. "A lot of people today don't give a crap about transgenics and try to avoid them and ignore the fact that they exist at all."  
  
"Try and talk them into it." Logan said bluntly.  
  
"Me?" Matt asked, "What do you expect me to do, I'm nobody here."  
  
"Just try, please, just try." Logan begged.  
  
"Okay, okay." Matt gave in.  
  
"What was the other thing?" Logan asked.  
  
"The guy remembered something else." Matt started.  
  
"What is it?" Logan asked impatiently.  
  
"The girl had a broken arm" 


	4. Discovery pt 2

(Cont. from 3. Discovery)  
  
Logan's mind ran questions through it faster than he could comprehend. Asha couldn't be a killer. Could she? Logan couldn't believe what he was thinking. He decided that he wouldn't tell Max until her knew for sure himself.  
  
He reached for the phone and began to dial Asha's number, half way through he stopped. "This is ridiculous." He said to himself. "Asha's not a killer! I know her and she can't be a killer. Besides, she's in Vancouver visiting her mother. Does she have a mother? That's stupid of course she has a mother, everybody has a mother. Maybe I don't know her that well!"  
  
Joshua crashed through his front door at that moment. "Logan!" Joshua said dumbly pointing at him.  
  
"Joshua, what's wrong?" Logan asked worriedly.  
  
"Transgenic, dead." He stated looking hurt that one of his own was now dead.  
  
"Joshua, where?" Logan asked planting both hands firmly on Joshua's shoulders.  
  
"Near my crib." Joshua mumbled clearly quite scared.  
  
"Josh," Logan said without letting go of his shoulders, "we're going to get Max and then we'll go and check it out. Okay?"  
  
"Max, Logan and Joshua, that's the plan." Joshua stated.  
  
"Yep, that's the plan." Logan confirmed grabbing his coat and heading for his car.  
  
Joshua followed close behind him.  
  
~*  
  
Max had managed to drift off to sleep in the arms of Alec. She sat in his lap with his arms wrapped around her.  
  
Alec sat patiently stroking her hair and just enjoyed having her there with him even if she was asleep. Once Alec heard a car down on the street his senses tuned in.  
  
It was particularly unusual for this time of night, well ever since they introduced a curfew. Most people were huddled in their homes praying to their God to save them from the transgenics.  
  
Alec carefully picked Max up and lay her on the ground. She didn't stir at all, it was obvious to him that she hadn't slept in quite awhile. He thought for a moment of how she must have found comfort in his arms, comfort enough to sleep. Alec quickly but carefully peered off the edge of the roof. He found great relief when he saw Logan and Joshua approaching the building, then panicked and remembered that he and Max were alone together on the roof.  
  
"Max," He whispered. "Max you have to wake up!"  
  
She stirred a bit, stretched herself out like a cat and went back to sleep.  
  
"No, damn it." He would feel bad about waking her later so he just picked her up and raced back to her apartment. He quickly put her into her bed, grabbed a blanket out of the cupboard in the bathroom and jumped on Max and Cindy's couch.  
  
A few moments later there was a knock at the door. Of course Alec knew who it was. As he passed by Cindy's room he saw that she wasn't in it. He quickly closed the door to her room and opened the door to the apartment.  
  
"Alec?" Logan asked surprised that he should be in Max's apartment at this hour. "What are you doing here?"  
  
" Ah, well." he was thinking, and thinking. "I brought Cindy home from Crash and Max was already home and the three of us got to talking. It got late and the girls told me to stay just incase I ran into the police on the way home and got arrested or killed."  
  
"Oh!" Logan said not sure if he should believe Alec but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. "So where's Max?"  
  
"She was asleep." Max said coming out of her room rubbing her eyes. She wasn't going to question to flaws in Alec's lie to Logan but she wasn't going to be apart of it.  
  
"Are you two okay?" Logan asked looking Max over. She hadn't bothered to get changed before she went into bed. Maybe Alec's story was plausible after all.  
  
Max gave him a weird look. "Of course we're alright." She said brushing of his concern.  
  
"Yeah," Alec backed her up, "Why wouldn't we be okay?"  
  
"There was another killing near Joshua's place." Logan informed them. "I don't want the three of you in town any more." He decided that checking it out was too dangerous so he tossed that idea.  
  
"Oh is that right?" Alec asked scoffing at the idea of being driven out of town by some one who was probably half his size and half his strength.  
  
Max's mind ticked over and over. Firstly, she was putting the evidence together to try and figure out who would want her people dead and managed to narrow it down to just about everybody in the city. "Damn it!" She cursed. Moving her train of thought to being out of town for a few days with Alec.  
  
"Logan, this is stupid!" Alec was ready to make sure everybody knew exactly what was on his mind. "Why should we have to go. Last time I checked this was a free country."  
  
Alec didn't get to finish his sentence because Logan cut in. "It hasn't been a free country for about fifteen years."  
  
"Well sorry for no being around when democracy went out the window!" Alec retorted.  
  
"Oh shut up the both of you!" Max cut in for the second time that day.  
  
"Or what?" Alec asked, "Are you going to start throwing stuff again?"  
  
"I'm gonna throw my fist at you in a minute." Max yelled at Alec.  
  
"Okay," Alec said trying to pick a fight with her, "Bring it on."  
  
"What the hell is wrong with you...?" Max said before remembering that Logan was in the room and silenced herself.  
  
All of them stood in silence until Joshua spoke up. "The plan." Was all he said, he was actually talking to Logan.  
  
"It's okay Josh, we'll fix the plan when Max and Alec have finished their disagreement." Logan said looking back to them, wait for a response from either of them.  
  
"We're done." Max said bitterly sitting down on the couch.  
  
Alec had a feeling that there was a message in the statement. "I'm not leaving town!"  
  
"Fine," Logan spoke up. "Stay here and die!"  
  
"Shut up Logan. It's one little person getting kicks out of offing a couple of transgenics!" Alec was losing patience fast.  
  
"Max?" Logan turned to face her.  
  
All eyes were on her waiting for her to make a decision on whether she was going to flee Seattle or not. "Would it make you happy?" She asked Logan.  
  
"Yes," Logan said in a 'matter-o-factly' tone.  
  
"Just one minute." Max stood up and headed for her bedroom, indicating for Alec to follow her.  
  
Alec walked in to her room and closed the door behind him. "So now you only do stuff that will make him happy?"  
  
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She questioned folding her arms.  
  
"If there wasn't a virus between the two of you, he'd probably have you on your knees." Alec said, angry that she would jump up and take orders from anyone, even Logan.  
  
"Alec that's disgusting!" Max said full of rage.  
  
"It's true!" Alec replied. "What is it that you want from me Max?"  
  
She crossed to him and put both hands on his face. "I want you to come with me."  
  
Alec shoved his hands deep in his pockets and tried to avoid eye contact with her.  
  
"Please," she begged. "I know that you don't want to give in and this threat doesn't seem that bad but just come, please."  
  
He couldn't resist her, she obviously cared or she wouldn't have risked it with her boyfriend in the next room. "Okay, okay. You win."  
  
Max smiled and planted a quick kiss on his lips, "That's what I like to hear." She released him and rejoined Logan and Joshua in the living area. "He's coming, he's just stubborn!"  
  
Alec shrugged his shoulders. "When do we leave?"  
  
"Er," Logan looked at his watch, "Now!"  
  
"Now?!?" Max, Alec and Joshua all said staring at Logan in disbelief.  
  
"Where are we going exactly?" Alec asked hating the idea more and more each second.  
  
"My family's cabin." Logan announced. "Pack for a few days."  
  
"This is ridiculous!" Alec said heading for the door.  
  
"Alec," Max called after him.  
  
Alec could see the pleading in her eyes and once again gave in closing the opened door and taking a seat on the couch.  
  
"Well Max I guess that we collect you first, since we're already here." Logan stated, watching, as she didn't wait for instructions just headed for her bedroom to pack her bag.  
  
"Cindy's a very sound sleeper." Logan remarked when Max was out of the room.  
  
"She was really tired and a bit drunk." Alec said trying to cover his ass again.  
  
After what seemed like forever, Max reappeared with a large packed bag and a small note, "I'm just gonna put this next to Cindy's bed so I don't have to wake her." Max indicated to the small note.  
  
~*  
  
Next stop was Alec's place. Alec certainly wasn't the cleanest person in the world but Max had seen worse. She realized how long it had been since she had stepped inside his crib.  
  
"Won't be a minute," he said leaving her at the front entrance and heading for his bedroom.  
  
Max only felt guilty as she looked around Alec's place. For some reason, being here with the person she was trying to build some kind of relationship with only reminded her more that she had a boyfriend and was betraying him every time she was around Alec.  
  
Alec came back only moments later with a bag in one hand. He saw Max looking at the floor, he could see that the guilt was finally getting to her. He put the bag on the floor, took her hands and wrapped them around him. "What do you want to do?" He asked holding her, not wanting her to leave him.  
  
"I don't know." Max whispered. "I don't want to string him along but I don't want to hurt him. I don't want to give up on us either." Max sobbed, she didn't know what she wanted. She had completely lost control of her current situation. "I just need some time to thing about it."  
  
"Okay." Alec said calmly. "I'm going to wait for you."  
  
Max felt an amazing sense of relief when he said that. She didn't know what happened to the Alec she used to know but who ever this was, was just as good, maybe better.  
  
~*  
  
Then to Joshua's place where they may as well have thrown the house on the top of Logan's car and taken it with them.  
  
"Joshua, I think that maybe we should leave some of these books at home." Max said looking at the masses of books in his bag. "Like this one." Max suggested picking up Josh's copy of 'Little Women'. "You've read it like three times."  
  
"Five." Joshua corrected her.  
  
"Okay," Max said amazed at her buddy.  
  
After a few arguments between Alec and Logan and Max and Alec, and trying to talk Josh out of the amount of things that he insisted on taking with him. They were on their way to Logan's cabin.  
  
~*  
  
"And you've got my number." Logan checked with Max.  
  
"Yes," Max replied getting short tempered. "Stop worrying! We're all going to be fine. Just find the killer. And if you need any help just call me and I'll come. Okay?"  
  
"Okay." Logan nodded. "Take care Max."  
  
"Don't panic. I'll be fine." Max assured him.  
  
He wanted to kiss her. He want so badly to just take her back with him and spend the nigh with her. But for the sake of his life he decided that that was probably a bad idea. So he got back into his car and drove home alone.  
  
Max watched him drive off. She saw the love in his eyes again for the second time that evening. She sighed to herself. She didn't want to hurt him. Alec and Josh were inside getting settled and she could hear the arguing and headed inside to settle the problem.  
  
~*  
  
Logan decided that he had to call Asha and settle himself. He picked up the phone and dialed her number.  
  
"Hello," Asha's voice appeared on the other end of the line.  
  
"Asha, it's Logan." He said full of nerves.  
  
"What is it Logan?" She asked sensing his worry.  
  
"I have to ask you something." He said trying to find his courage but then decided that since he's got this far he may as well finish it.  
  
"Yes." Asha asked letting a hint of confusion escape in her voice.  
  
"Have S1W been going around killing transgenics?" Logan asked. In his head he really knew that he want to ask, 'have you been going around killing transgenics' but he would have to stick with accusing the S1W for the time being.  
  
"What?" Asha asked, shocked and clearly annoyed. "God no! Why, What, Why would they?" Asha stumbled.  
  
"I don't know. They're dropping like flies around the city and whoever's killing them is packing serious heat." Logan informed her.  
  
"Oh, so because they have advanced weaponry you automatically assumed that the S1W were involved?" Asha yelled at him.  
  
"No, it's just that I have to explore every possibility." He said trying to defend himself.  
  
"Half the people in this city are packing serious heat, Logan!" She informed him before hanging up the phone.  
  
Logan sat down, more frazzled the he'd been at the start of the day.  
  
~*  
  
Asha had never been so out raged at Logan. How dare he blame her S1W for the mess that had nothing to do with them at all? It was her problem and she'd deal with it.  
  
She grabbed a gun out of the top draw of the desk in her office, then her coat from the back of the lounge chair and left her home in search of any transgenics.  
  
"This world's had enough of you people!" She mumbled walking into the streets hoping to find her second victim for that evening.  
  
~*  
  
Max managed to settle Joshua down it one of the rooms and he was fast asleep within minutes. Now to deal with Alec.  
  
"Josh's settled." She said to a clearly bored Alec who was sitting on the couch flipping through Joshua's copy of 'Moby Dick' upside down. "You fool." She said stealing the book off him and plopping on to the couch next to him.  
  
"Logan's family are the most boring people in the world. There's nothing to do here." He pointed out casually wrapping an arm around Max.  
  
"Alec," Max said letting herself out of his grasp, "We're taking this slow, remember?"  
  
"So now I can't touch you at all?" He questioned. "This is going to be just like your relationship with Logan." He stated getting pissed off.  
  
"That's not fair!" She yelled at him.  
  
"What am I supposed to do?" Alec kissed his temper good bye at that point. "I care about you so much and you just keep me at arms length while you decide if you want him or me!"  
  
Max shook her head slightly and remembered, that wasn't the first time that someone had said that to her. She remembered Darren '.but you keep everybody at arms length like you've got some big dark something going on.' She played the scene over in her head like it happened only yesterday. "Good night Alec!" She said getting up, stormed into her room and slammed the door.  
  
"Ouch." Alec said when she was gone. "I really screwed that up!"  
  
~*  
  
Asha knocked on the door of Max's place, when there was no answer she let herself in.  
  
First she went to Max's room and looked around took note of the absence of some of her clothes. She then moved into Cindy's room.  
  
On Cindy's bedside table Asha saw a note written in Max's hand writing. She picked it up and read it.  
  
'Cindy, Logan thinks that this transgenic killer chick must be after me or something so Me, Alec and Joshua are heading out to Logan's cabin for a few days while he tries to catch her. Anyway, tell Normal that I won't be into work for a couple of days. Thanks. Oh, you should probably tell him that Alec won't be in either. Love ya. Max'  
  
"You can run from me Max but you can't hide!" Asha whispered and silently left.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!!! 


	5. Discovery pt 3

Logan couldn't sleep. Less than an hour ago, he had accused his informant, his work partner, the person who trusted him, his friend, of murder.  
  
"Who would do that?" Logan asked himself flicking the blankets off him and moving on to his closet to get dressed. He decided that it would be best for everybody if he went over to Asha's place and apologize for jumping to conclusions.  
  
~*  
  
Asha's place was dark. Logan knocked on the door several times before deciding that she was asleep like every other sane person on the planet at this time of night. He couldn't help himself, he tried the door, locked. Logan started to check for spare keys, mat, loose brick, garden gnome, bingo.  
  
Once inside Asha's apartment, Logan flicked on the light and headed for her room in a hope to wake her up and make her listen to long and most probably worthless apology, he had planned on his way over in the car.  
  
Asha, however, wasn't in her bed, in fact she wasn't in the apartment at all.  
  
Logan stopped in her office. The computer sat switched on, on the desk that more useless junk on it that information. He just couldn't help himself. He touched the mouse and the swirling colors ceased and an urgent message warning flashed on screen.  
  
Logan opened the message knowing that he'd pay for reading her stuff without her knowledge later.  
  
It said: I know that we've had this argument before but I'm getting past my tolerance on the matter. I don't care who they think you are! I don't care who you hurt in the process! Just deliver me 452's body like we discussed, THREE MONTHS AGO, then maybe we'll look at exactly where you stand in this scenario. Just remember, you came to me, I just happen to not care what happens to you.  
  
Logan couldn't believe his eyes. He ran a search through Asha computer and found messages that told her just what to do once she had finished with Max. He found instructions telling her to make it a serial killing. He found that she was working for Ames White!  
  
Logan started to panic, he'd deal with Asha, his friend who happened to be the transgenic serial killer. He wouldn't tell Max, he could fix this.  
  
He raced back to his car and dialed Max's place.  
  
Cindy answered the phone. "Hello, how the hell is this? It's two o'clock in the freakin morning!"  
  
"Cindy, it's Logan." Logan rushed, he tried not to sound panicked. "Have you heard from Max?"  
  
"What the hell do you mean?" Cindy asked drunk, tired and angry. "Why do I need to hear from her for? She's out at your cabin isn't she? Huh? Yes, I believe she is and you should really learn to be more precise when you're handing out instructions and do your own dirty work! People don't need to be running half way across the county because you need a favor done or a message delivered or a coke or whatever and another thing."  
  
Logan could see that Cindy was very drunk and didn't have time to waste, "Cindy!" He yelled into the phone cutting her off mid sentence. "What the hell are you going on about? What do you mean running across the country?"  
  
"What do you mean, what do I mean?" Cindy slurred, "You're the one sending poor Asha out in the middle of the night just so Max knows that her transport to China or wherever will be there at ten. Haven't you ever heard of the telephone?"  
  
"You told Asha where Max was?" Logan asked disbelief. He didn't wait for Cindy's reply. "You told Asha that Max was at my family's cabin? You sent her to my cabin? She told you that she had to give Max a message and you told her where Max was?"  
  
"Geez Logan, lighten up." Cindy struggled to get the words out in a straight sentence without bringing up all the alcohol that she had consumed in the past few hours. "Asha's your little work buddy or whatever. If you have a problem with her helping that perhaps you should tell her. Why the hell did you tell her to give Max a message if she wasn't meant to go and give it to her?"  
  
"I didn't!" Logan yelled hanging up the phone and driving recklessly towards his cabin.  
  
~*  
  
Alec laid on the couch and tried to amuse himself as he counted down the time that he had decided to let Max cool down before he made his move.  
  
Alec thought that he heard a noise outside but put it down to the rain that had started to fall rather heavily about ten minutes ago.  
  
"Three minutes." Alec said to himself looking at his watch then looking to the door of Max's room.  
  
At that moment, the noise that Alec thought he heard became fact, when the door to the cabin went flying open and a wet figure stood in the doorway.  
  
Alec couldn't help but make a stupid remark. "You know that if you had knocked I would have gotten up and answered the door."  
  
"Why don't you start by shutting your smart ass mouth!" A bitter voice returned.  
  
Max followed her instinct and ran to the door. She flung it open half- expecting Alec to be standing like a dumb idiot in the middle of the living room with a broken lamp or something. Instead she found Asha with a gun pointed directly at Alec's head.  
  
~*  
  
Logan was driving like a mad man. He needed to be at the cabin before something bad happened. Thanks to Cindy's drunken state Asha knew exactly where she was going if she wanted Max dead.  
  
The rain hadn't helped the situation at all. He was still finding it hard to believe that Asha was a killer and working for none other than Ames White!  
  
He knew that Asha was already at the cabin if he was nearly there than it was a certainty that Asha would be there planning her attack or already carrying it out!  
  
Logan took the next turn on the slippery road a little to sharp and went careering of the road and into the nearest tree.  
  
~*  
  
After Cindy's slightly unpleasant conversation with Logan and a vomiting session, she decided to climb into bed and sleep it off.  
  
On arrival in her bedroom, Cindy noticed a small folded piece of paper on her bedside table.  
  
She picked it up and read it, it was from Max.  
  
"Asha's the transgenic killer?" Cindy asked herself.  
  
~*  
  
Logan was okay, sore and disorientated but still okay. He climbed out of his completely destroyed car just in time for it to catch on fire.  
  
"No, no, no, no, no, no!" Logan yelled at the burning vehicle. He was starting to lose conscious and was developing double vision. He just wanted to lie down on the side of the road and go to sleep.  
  
Logan started to walk. It was pouring rain and he couldn't see what he was doing or where her was going. He had lost a lot of his logical thought but could still compose himself enough to get the basic concept of what he was meant to be doing.  
  
"I have to save Max." He mumbled slightly incoherent and kept putting one foot in front of the other and slowly worked his way towards the cabin.  
  
~*  
  
"Asha, what the hell are you doing?" Max asked when the gun moved from Alec head to hers.  
  
"I'm doing what I should have done when you first came back from Manticore." Asha said calmly yet with a sense of craziness.  
  
"You don't want to do this!" Alec said raising a hand and slowly starting in Asha direction.  
  
Asha moved the gun back to Alec and he stopped edging forward. "I really don't think you should do that. I have enough bullets for the both of you.  
  
Max looked at Alec. She wanted him to read her eyes and see that if he distracted her enough, Max could knock her out. 'Hell', she thought, 'we're genetically engineered for God's sake!'  
  
When Alec looked at Max, Asha saw something pass between the two of them. "Oh my God!" Asha said in realization, "You two are having an affair!"  
  
"No we're not!" Max and Alec both chimed in at the same time, staring at Asha as though she just revealed the world's biggest secret.  
  
"You never loved him." Asha started softly and then worked her way into a shout. "You never gave a shit about him! You were using him! You treated him like crap, but he loved you so much that he couldn't see the real you, he didn't see the wool that you pulled over his eyes."  
  
Max stared at her in disbelief. She stood up straight and looked directly at Asha, who at this point in time had moved the gun to her side after waving it frantically through the air yelling at Max, and said in a calm voice. "To bad that he didn't see you coming either!"  
  
"You don't deserve him!" Asha screamed at Max. Asha was now looking for a fight. "You should have stayed away from him. You're a disease that spreads through society. No one even sees you, because they don't want to believe that you exist. You're kind were never meant to be here, you were a fault of human development. You were a mistake. Do you hear me? A mistake!"  
  
Joshua could hear the yelling. It didn't initially wake him, the crash woke him. He knew Asha, not well, but he knew her.  
  
He peered through the tiny space between the door and the doorframe. He tested different angles. He saw Asha, she looked very angry and kept waving a gun around yelling mean stuff at Max. Then there was Alec who tried to appear calm but wasn't fooling Joshua. And Max, poor Max was just standing there getting close to pinning herself against the wall, taking in everything that Asha said.  
  
"Thanks Asha, you're real nice." Alec said trying to be smart. "First you bust in here without knocking, accuse me and Max of having an affair and now you're calling me and mine horrible things and I'm not going to stand here and tolerate it."  
  
"Shut up Alec!" Max and Asha both cued on time.  
  
Max was about to run at Asha and tackle her to the ground and punch the living shit out of her but by the time she was ready to run Asha had repositioned the gun and fired it.  
  
~*  
  
Logan could just see the cabin. The lights were on and there were people yelling at each other. Then there was a gun fired, Logan panicked and started running for the cabin.  
  
He prayed that it wasn't Max. He hoped that she was all right. He fell over many times on his sprint to the cabin's front door. He could feel the blood on his head, it was thicker than the rain and sticky. It was the gash from the car crash. His track through the wilderness didn't help his legs or his exoskeleton, he could feel it starting to falter but thanked his God when it lasted the distance from the car to the cabin, through the pouring rain and didn't give in.  
  
He could see Asha's slim form standing in the doorway of the family cabin. She stood frozen with the gun held out in front of her. She wasn't moving, Logan wondered if she decided that she had made a bad decision at the last second.  
  
Max slid down to the floor with aid from the wall. She lay in a heap on the floor clutching at her left shoulder. She could feel herself slowly drifting into unconsciousness, the blood was leaving her body faster then she could comprehend.  
  
Alec rushed to her side. "Max, Max? Can you hear me?" He said taking her face in his hands and stroking it thoughtfully. "You'll be okay, I promise. I'll make sure that you're okay."  
  
Max couldn't feel anything, her whole body had gone completely numb on her. Her eyes kept trying to roll into the back of her head but she fought to stay alive. She fought so hard, but the numbness was becoming too much for her to handle. She didn't even notice Alec lean her against his chest and hold her. "I think."  
  
"Shh, don't talk." Alec said rocking her back and forward gently, "Everything will be okay."  
  
Tears welled in Max's eyes as she watched Alec look at her with an unbelievable amount of protection. She suddenly felt very tired, she closed her eyes and nuzzled right into Alec's chest. "Goodbye." She whispered to him.  
  
"No," Alec demanded the dying Max. "No you don't. You're going to live. Sure you've lost a shit load of blood, but you're strong Maxie. You know it, I know it. Please don't go." Alec let tears spill out of his eyes, as he held Max close and felt her life slowly slip out of her body. He had his hand over the bullet wound trying to stop the blood loss but was doubtful himself.  
  
Joshua couldn't believe what he was seeing. He flung the door open and started for Asha knocking her over onto the hard wood floor. He wanted to rip her into a thousand human pieces but could make his conscience do it so until he thought of something he could do, he took her weapon and threw it into the front yard and sat on her.  
  
"Joshua?" Logan yelled as he got closer to the cabin. His vision just allowed him to see Asha hit the floor and the dog-man Joshua sit on her. "Joshua, where's Max?"  
  
Joshua stood, spun around and then ran for Logan. "Asha shot Max." He said slowing when he reached Logan.  
  
"What?" Logan questioned shocked and scared. "Is she okay? Is Max okay?"  
  
"She's sleeping," Joshua remembered Max closing her eyes and Alec shaking her awake.  
  
Logan ran passed Joshua, up to the cabin and through the empty doorway. He stopped when he saw Alec rocking Max and whispering things in her ear. "Is she okay?"  
  
Alec looked up at Logan, his eyes full of tears that wouldn't stop coming. "No. I think she's gone Logan."  
  
Logan started towards the wall Alec was leaning against arms out ready to scoop Max up. He fell on his ass on the floor when Alec put his hand up to stop him from touching Max.  
  
"Do you want to die?" Alec yelled at him still gripping the unconscious Max. "Just because she's dead doesn't mean the virus is!"  
  
Joshua reappeared in the doorway. "Asha gone!" He yelled at the males sitting in the corner grieving Max. "We gotta blaze. Hospital. Gotta save Max."  
  
Alec had the worst feeling that there was no hope for her but they may as well try. He stood, scooping Max into his arms and heading for the front yard where Asha's four wheel drive was still parked.  
  
Joshua helped Logan to his feet and escorted him to the car.  
  
Alec knew that Logan was in no shape to drive and Joshua shouldn't be let behind the wheel of a car so he would have to drive.  
  
He gave Joshua strict instructions on how much pressure to put on Max's wound. He put Max and Joshua in the back and the barely conscious Logan in the front and headed back into town as fast as the weather would allow him.  
  
~*  
  
Max was still asleep when the nurse came to check her vitals that morning and sent Alec and Logan out of the room. When the nurse started to fiddle around with her back and lower stomach Max decided that it was time to wake up. She flicked her eyes open wide and then closed them again when the light hit them. She let out a long agonizing moan and slowly opened them again.  
  
"Good morning sleepy head," The nurse said removing her hand and recovering Max with the blankets. "We were worried about you."  
  
"Really?" Max questioned still groggy from whatever antibiotics they gave her. "What happened?"  
  
"From what I've been told, you were shot by some crazy bitch called Asha!" The nurse said remembering the heated argument between Logan and Alec during the night.  
  
"Tell them I died and that they can come in and say goodbye now." Max said squeezing her eyes tight in a failed hope to extinguish her headache.  
  
"Is that a good idea?" The nurse asked raising an eyebrow at Max. "Would you like some more pain killers?"  
  
"God no!" Max said opening her eyes wide. "Just tell them I'm dead, okay?"  
  
"If you insist." The nurse said heading for the door to Max's room and two very tired guys. "Um. how do I say this?" The nurse asked stopping in front of Alec and Logan.  
  
"Oh my God, what happened?" Logan sat up in his wheelchair worried.  
  
"She just passed on." The nurse said all most unable to control her smile.  
  
"What?" Alec said jumping up and running into Max's room closely followed by Logan in his wheelchair.  
  
When Alec saw her sitting up and staring at him with a big smile on her face he knew that the joke was for him. He smiled and ran over to her, jumped onto the bed and gave her a big hug.  
  
Logan wheeled himself over to the side of the bed. "Man am I glad that you're okay." He said with a great deal of relief.  
  
"Me too." Alec said looking at her quickly and then burying his face in her hair.  
  
"I'm fine." Max laughed at Alec who was sprawled on top of her. "Alec, please get off me." She was glad when his weight was lifted off her but she still wanted him near her.  
  
"We should be able to take you home soon, I hope." Alec said casually as he sat in a chair beside her bed.  
  
"We called Cindy and everybody from Jam Pony." Logan started, "They told us to call when we knew exactly what was happening. Cindy said she'd be here as soon as possible."  
  
"And here she is." Cindy said entering the room and hugging Max. "Don't you ever do that again, do you hear me. Never!"  
  
"I promise." Max whispered trying to hold back her tears as she was held in the arms of her best friend. 


	6. 06 Normal?

Max entered her apartment with Alec close in tow. She dumped herself on the couch and let out a pained moan.  
  
Alec dropped the bag of things that Max had accumulated at the hospital on the floor in the middle of the kitchen and moved over to her. He grabbed a hold of her arm and pulled her to her feet.  
  
"Ah, what the hell are you doing?" Max groaned through her sore throat and stuffy nose.  
  
"You're going to bed." He said trying to hold her up as she slipped back onto the couch.  
  
"Alec, fling off." She said slapping at him. "I've been in bed for a week and a half, I don't need to be in there again."  
  
"Maybe," Alec started, "but now you've picked up some kind of flu from that yucky hospital and are going to stay in bed until it goes away."  
  
"Don't you start with me!" Max warned. "I don't need you telling me what to do. In the past two weeks, I've been threatened, driven out of town, shot, fussed over, bossed around and now I have a small cold and you thing it's the end of the world."  
  
"Max I'm just trying to make sure you're okay, you were just shot in the shoulder." Alec reminded her.  
  
"Just?" Max asked, "It was two weeks ago!"  
  
"A week and three days." He corrected.  
  
"Whatever!" Max was getting frustrated, "I had to have my heart transplanted and I was out doing drills within five days. Don't act like I could break at any second, I'm not glass."  
  
"I don't care if your freakin gold, you're going to bed." Alec said pulling her up again.  
  
"No!" She slapped his hand that was gripped onto her upper arm.  
  
"Yes!" Alec picked her up, flung her over his shoulder and carried her kicking and screaming into her room. He put her on her bed and started to take off her shoes.  
  
"Bastard!" She cursed lying motionless on her bed.  
  
Alec smiled to himself.  
  
~*  
  
Max strolled into Jam Pony the next day looking even worse than she felt.  
  
"Max!" Normal was surprised to see her, "I really didn't think that you'd be back so soon after someone shot you."  
  
"Thanks Normal." She said sarcastically and walking up to the desk to try and start a conversation with the man.  
  
~*  
  
Alec saw Max come in and turned to Cindy. "What the hell is she doing here?" He asked Cindy angrily. "She's meant to be resting!"  
  
Cindy joined him in watching Max show off her new wound to Normal. "You can't keep a good girl down."  
  
"She looks like shit run over twice!" Alec yelled.  
  
"She looks aiight to me." Cindy said before turning to go back to her locker.  
  
"She looks like she's going to faint." Alec said leaving Cindy and approaching Max.  
  
Max saw him coming and held up a hand to silence him. "Before you go all protective on me. Let me remind you that I am fine!"  
  
"You look pale and pasty." He said putting the back of his hand on her head.  
  
"I am pale and pasty but I feel fine." She informed him.  
  
"Normal she has to go home to bed." Alec turned to Normal for support.  
  
"Alec," Max yelled just as Normal opened his mouth to say something, "I don't need bed, I don't need rest, I need to get on with my life!" She yelled gripping Normal's desk before she fell over.  
  
Alec took a hold of her and led her towards the door. "You're sick and I'm not going to have you kill yourself by getting on a bike and riding all over town."  
  
"Shut up!" She yelled but didn't try to fight him off just walked as he pushed her along.  
  
~*  
  
As Max lay in bed waiting for Alec to come in and give her another lecture she finally got the chance to think. She hadn't spoken to Logan since that day in the hospital when he thought she was dead. "Maybe he's avoiding me?" she asked herself.  
  
"Maybe who's avoiding you?" Alec questioned handing her a cup of coffee and sitting on the end of her bed.  
  
"Logan he's." Max trailed off when she saw his face drop. "What?"  
  
"Nothing." Alec leaned over and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "Will you be okay?"  
  
"Yeah." Max sighed. "I'll be fine. Alec."  
  
"Yes?" He asked hoping that she beg him to hold her and never leave her.  
  
She was going to ask him to stay with her, that what she wanted but she already felt stupid thinking about it. She felt her face go red. "Nothing."  
  
"Okay." Alec shrugged his shoulders and left her room. He decided to go back to work and visit Max later.  
  
~*  
  
"Hi," Logan spoke into his phone to Lydecker's message bank, "it's Logan again. I've been trying to get in touch with you for about ten months now. I know about the car accident and I don't know if you're alive or not but I have to keep trying. Max wants to see you." He hung up the phone hoping that the mention of Max would coach him into getting in touch.  
  
Logan was tired. He worried about Max so much. He had stepped around her knowing that she would be angry with him for not telling her about Asha being a psycho killer. He got up and left his office for the kitchen in a hope to find some lunch.  
  
"Logan." A small voice called him from the corner of his lounge room.  
  
"Asha." He replied. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Relax. I'm not going to kill you." Asha said hurt by her own words. "I came to say that I'm sorry for everything. White had me backed into a corner."  
  
"No he didn't." Logan said bitterly. "I saw the e-mail from him on your computer."  
  
"You went through my stuff?" Asha asked shocked. "Why?"  
  
"I knew it was you." He said quietly. "I was coming to apologize for jumping to conclusions. I didn't want to believe that you could kill someone but I knew it was you."  
  
"So when you asked about the S1W, you really wanted to know if I killed them?" She asked still remaining calm.  
  
"Yeah, basically." He said shoving his hands into his pockets and staring at the floor.  
  
"Well, that's okay then, I suppose." Asha felt regret running through her. "Please forgive me."  
  
"What?" Logan asked surprised, "You tried to kill my girlfriend and her kind and you want me to forgive you?"  
  
"I never wanted to hurt you Logan." Asha stated. "Max just makes me so angry, she doesn't deserve you."  
  
"Asha please leave now." Logan requested without looking at her.  
  
"Don't you want to call the cops or something?" Asha asked bitterly.  
  
"No," Logan replied, "no because I'm not that kind of friend."  
  
Asha left without saying another word.  
  
~*  
  
*Flashback*  
  
"Tell me about these dead transgenics." Logan said taking her gloved hand in his and pulled her out of her work place.  
  
"Well." Max started, "From what I saw there were bullet wounds, three."  
  
"Ouch." Logan commented. "Look, I'm really sorry for not telling you about Jondy. I'm trying to get her to come here. I didn't want to get your hopes up. Please don't try to get in contact with her. I don't want to scare her off. I'll handle it, I promise."  
  
"Thanks." Max smiled at him.  
  
*End Flashback*  
  
Max woke up and stared at the ceiling. She was running a fever and shaking like hell. "Damn you." She cursed the hospital and climbed out of bed and headed for her tryptophan.  
  
The bathroom tiles were cold but she had to sit, it's not like she had a choice she fell over and was laying sprawled all over the floor. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths then carefully got to her feet.  
  
"I'm hungry." She said to the fridge door before pulling it open. When there was nothing that interested her she decided to go back to bed. She turned and carefully stepped over the bag that Alec left in the middle of the room and went back into the bathroom.  
  
Her tryptophan was left all over the floor. "Shit!" She swore bending down to pick it up. The rush of blood to the head wasn't a good thing for Max and she fainted.  
  
~*  
  
"Hot run!" Normal yelled throwing a package in Alec's direction.  
  
"Normal, I can't do it." Alec said taking it back to him. "I have to check on Max."  
  
"Check Max later, deliver the package now." Normal picked up the package and pushed it into his arms.  
  
"I can't, I'm sorry." Alec said backing away from him. "Well, I'm not really sorry, but I had to say something." He turned quickly and ran before Normal started throwing sharp objects at him.  
  
~*  
  
Alec entered Max's apartment and went straight to her room. He only half expected her to still be in bed when he came to check on her. He went searching the apartment looking for her before he decided to start a search party. Sure enough there was an unconscious Max lying head over toe on the bathroom floor in a pile of tryptophan.  
  
He rolled his eyes. "Max," he said softly shaking her. "Max."  
  
She moaned painfully and looked up at him. He was wearing one of his goofy smiles that, nine times out of ten, made her want to smack his face in.  
  
"I didn't know that bathroom floors were more comfortable then beds, mind if I join you?" He said smartly sitting next to her.  
  
"I passed out." She groaned then coughed.  
  
"I think we should get you some medication." He said watching her struggle to roll on to her back before giving her a slight push.  
  
"No!" She yelled croaky. "No more doctors, no more hospitals, no more self centered nurses."  
  
"You're sick." He pointed out just incase she forgot.  
  
"Thanks." She said sarcastically trying to sit up.  
  
Alec was fed up. He lifted Max into his arms and carried her off to bed. "Stay!" he commanded.  
  
"Alec, I'm a big girl and I can take care of my self!" She was getting disorientated.  
  
"I'm sure that you can." Alec watched her sway from side to side waving her arms around.  
  
She got on her knees in her bed and wrapped her arms around him. "I think I know you from somewhere." She said screwing with him.  
  
"Ha, you're real funny." He said allowing her to hang off him.  
  
"I'm very tired." She said releasing him and scrunching her self into a tight ball at the head of her bed.  
  
Alec sighed and pulled the blankets up to her shoulders.  
  
She grabbed a hold of his hand as it released the blanket and pulled him onto the bed. "Alec, I'm sick." She admitted, wrapping his arm around her and resting her head against his chest.  
  
As she drifted straight to sleep, Alec watched her face and her struggled breathing. "You're gonna give it to me." He whispered.  
  
~*  
  
Logan decided that he couldn't avoid Max forever, if she got mad then she got mad and there was nothing he could do.  
  
He picked up the phone and dialed Max's number. It rang and rang just as Logan was about to hang up a voice answered.  
  
"Yep?" Alec asked.  
  
"Alec?" Logan asked curiously, "What are you doing at Max's place?"  
  
"She's not well." Alec answered heading back to where Max lie coughing uncontrollably. "Logan's on the phone." He handed her the phone and rubbed her back gently.  
  
"Hello." Max groaned into the phone.  
  
"You sound well." Logan commented. "I was calling to see how you were doing now but you're obviously not doing that well."  
  
"I got sick in hospital." Max complained.  
  
"Can transgenics get sick?" Logan asked confused.  
  
"We're human Logan." She replied. "Not usually. Unless the thingy system thing is like down or something and a bug or virus or whatever gets in and attacks you what's-a-magig and then you get sick like a normal person."  
  
Alec snatched the phone away from her. "She means immune system."  
  
"Alec put Max back on." Logan said frustrated.  
  
"I'm here." Max's croaky voice reappeared.  
  
"Are you going to be alright?" Logan asked sounding worried.  
  
"Why does everybody think that I'm going to die or something?" Max questioned annoyed.  
  
"I'm just worried about you." Logan said.  
  
"I know." Max replied. "I will be fine. I promise."  
  
"I hope so." Logan said still worried even after her assurance.  
  
"I will be!" Max yelled laughing but still annoyed.  
  
"Okay, love you." He said casually.  
  
"You too." She replied before hanging up the phone.  
  
Logan didn't feel like she was even there anymore. He missed not being able to hold her and kiss her the way he once could. He sighed and turned on his computer and began typing away.  
  
~*  
  
Original Cindy entered the apartment at about ten o'clock that night. She would have come home straight after work but she knew that Alec was taking good care of Max and she wouldn't have to.  
  
Still she had to check that she was all right. Cindy quietly stuck her head in the door.  
  
Max was laying on her back with Alec laying to her left with his arm slung over her.  
  
"Damn girl you've worn the boy out." Cindy giggled to herself as she watched to two sleep soundly.  
  
She headed off to bed herself and slept through the night without being disturbed once.  
  
~*  
  
Max woke up and slapped Alec off her and start to cough repeatedly.  
  
"Good morning to you too." Alec said looking at her smartly and slapping her back.  
  
"Ouch!" She cursed and sat up. "Oh, the room is spinning."  
  
"I think you should stay in bed again today." Alec suggested.  
  
"Alec," Max whined, "I'm sick of being in bed, I want fresh air, I need to clear my head. Take me somewhere."  
  
"Where do you want me to take you?" He asked and kissed her nose.  
  
"Somewhere, anywhere, the park." She grabbed at her head.  
  
"What? Are you five now?" Alec questioned handing her a tissue.  
  
"No." Max was losing her temper. "I want air. The park is the only place in this city with trees."  
  
"Okay, okay. I'll take you to the park." Alec gave in. "But only if you eat all of your vegetables."  
  
"Shut up!" She slapped him and let his strong arms pull her into a hug.  
  
~*  
  
Max sat on the park bench and watched the children play. There were fairies and pirates engaged in tea parties and swore fights. Max smiled wondering what she would have been like if she had grown up like this.  
  
A pair of hands covered her eyes and a voice whispered, "Guess who."  
  
"Ah," Max said playing with him, "Batman?"  
  
Alec laughed and plopped down on the grass in front of her. He propped himself up on his elbows and looked at her. "What ya thinking?"  
  
"What it would have been like to be a normal child." She replied returning his look. There was something in his eyes that she couldn't explain, like he was showing or about to show her a side of him that she'd never seen.  
  
"And tell me Max, what is normal?" Alec said without changing his expression.  
  
"That." She replied pointing at the happy children playing together. "That is normal."  
  
"Think," Alec grabbed her attention. "Our life was just like theirs, it's just they pretend to run around playing soldiers but we got the real deal."  
  
Max did think about it. She knew that Alec was, in so many ways, right. She looked at her hands. Through all of his stupidity, he was quite smart.  
  
Alec took her hand and pulled her to the ground with him. "Now we can look at the clouds. That one looks like a tiny French poodle." He said pointing at a cloud.  
  
Max cuddled into his shoulder and let him hold her. "You know what, I think you're right."  
  
Alec knew that she didn't mean the cloud, that she meant their lives at Manticore, he just smiled to himself and pointed out another cloud. 


	7. Broken

Max's cold was clearing up, she still didn't really fully understand why she got sick but decided that it wasn't important.  
  
"Are you coming to work today?" Original Cindy came out to the kitchen where Max was busy buttering her toast.  
  
"I might." Max said cheekily taking a bite out of her peanut buttered toast.  
  
"Damn girl," Cindy shook her head, "Alec got wrapped around his finger for you."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Max screwed up her face and asked innocently trying not to smile.  
  
"You know you can't pull the wool over Original Cindy!" Cindy said waving her finger at her.  
  
"I still don't have any idea what you're going on about." Max said without breaking her innocence.  
  
"My God," Cindy shook her head again, "I'm gonna break it down for you. Alec likes you."  
  
"Okay." Max said directly, gaining her eye contact.  
  
"Okay?" She asked confused. "And you like him."  
  
"Please," Max scoffed, "Me and Alec aren't even like that."  
  
"That's exactly what you said about Logan and look what happened there." Cindy said smartly.  
  
"Speaking of, I have to go and see him some time today." Max made a mental note and went back to her toast.  
  
"Why?" Cindy inquired.  
  
"I just haven't spoken to him in like two weeks." Max said casually.  
  
"Oh, why?" Cindy asked again.  
  
"I don't know but I get the impression that he's avoiding me." Max said now puzzled.  
  
"That doesn't make any sense." Cindy scratched her head.  
  
"No it really doesn't." Max agreed still pondering.  
  
"Well, why are you going to see him?" Cindy asked.  
  
"I have to ask him about Asha." Max said.  
  
"Asha the psycho killer." Cindy added.  
  
"That would be the one." Max confirmed getting some juice out of the fridge.  
  
"I'll have one of those." Cindy said when she saw the juice. "Maybe he's worried about how you'll act."  
  
"Well," Max handed the glass full of juice to Cindy and plastered a serious look on her face, "he should be. He didn't tell me that she was running around trying to kill me and mine."  
  
"I see why he's avoiding you now." Cindy said smartly like she had just cured world hunger. "He afraid that you're going to get angry with him for not telling you about Asha."  
  
"You know what, you're right." Max smiled. "I am going to yell at him."  
  
"I should be a marriage counselor." Cindy complimented herself.  
  
"Logan and I aren't married." Max pointed out on her way back to her room to grab her shoes and jacket.  
  
"You wish!" Cindy yelled after her.  
  
Max smiled to herself as she pulled her shoes on.  
  
~*  
  
"Hot run!" Normal yelled in a new employee's direction as Original Cindy and Max entered the building.  
  
The poor guy struggled to stay balanced, catch the package and hold his bike all at the same time and fell on his ass.  
  
All of Jam Pony erupted into fits of laughter, everyone accept Max.  
  
"Sorry bout that." Max offered him a hand and pulled him up. "You're new, what's your name?"  
  
"Trent." The young man answered dusting himself off.  
  
"I'm Max." She shook his hand and then signaled for him to follow her to the lockers. "So Trent, you're new to Jam Pony, are you new to the city as well?"  
  
"Yeah, I lived in Portland all my life and decided that it was time for a change." He answered watching Max fiddle with some things in her locker.  
  
"You gave up Portland to work at Jam Pony?" Max asked in disbelief.  
  
"This is only temporary." Trent stated.  
  
"Wish I could say the same." Max said walking around him and over to Normal's desk. "Give me something with the new kid."  
  
"Okay." Normal handed her a package. "Scoot."  
  
"You don't need to tell me twice." Max left Normal at his desk and went to get her bike. "Come on Trent."  
  
Trent obediently followed her out of Jam Pony and headed towards sector two.  
  
"So what do you want to do?" Max asked.  
  
"What?" Trent asked taken by surprise.  
  
"You said that Jam Pony was a temporary deal, so what is it that you want to do?" Max asked keeping her eyes on the road.  
  
"Oh," Trent remembered their earlier conversation. "I didn't think that you were even listening."  
  
"Me?" Max said surprised, "Nothing gets past me. I hear just about everything. So are you going to tell me or not?"  
  
"Um, I want to investigate stuff." He told her.  
  
"Like for the cops?" Max asked now officially intrigued.  
  
"No," Trent shook his head, "like for a journalist or something like that."  
  
"Cool." Max complimented giving him an approving nod.  
  
~*  
  
Alec decided that he didn't feel like going to work that day and chose to stay at home in bed. He had called Normal, who was more than happy to give him the day, and went back to sleep.  
  
At ten o'clock he got up and had some breakfast, he treated himself to bacon and eggs, pancakes and toast with strawberry jam. Most, of which he had to get the night before at the market before they ran out, stuff like that was pretty rare to people these days.  
  
After breakfast, he showered and sat down to watch daytime TV. Apparently this chick called Hope and this guy called Beau had been planning to get married again for the past twenty-five years. "Good stuff." Alec said biting into an apple and watching intently.  
  
~*  
  
"Logan?" Max called entering his apartment with Trent closely in tow.  
  
"In here." Logan called from his office. "I was wondering when you were going to drop by.""  
  
"Hear I am." Max headed for his office. On arriving at the door she saw Logan bent into a filing cabinet. Max tilted he head to the side and looked at his ass moving around as he struggled to get his head out of the cabinet and regain his composure. She put her hand of her mouth and tried to stop herself from laughing hysterically.  
  
When Logan was free from his man made disaster he leaned against the filing cabinet and smiled. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Wasting time." She answered looking at his mess of papers and other stationary. "What happened in here? Did you like switch on the fan and throw all your work into it?"  
  
"No." Logan replied picking up a book off the floor. "When I moved I managed to lose some stuff."  
  
"What, you thought trying to stuff your whole body into a filing cabinet would help?" Max laughed.  
  
"Was there a reason why you dropped by or are you really just wasting time?" Logan asked obviously hurt.  
  
"It's not even like that." Max started to defend herself. "I was in the area and thought that I come and see you. I haven't seen you for weeks."  
  
"I've been busy and you've been in hospital and sick." Logan replied flipping through the book then discarding it on the floor and picking up another.  
  
"Yeah," Max responded distracted by his actions. "What is it that you're looking for?"  
  
"Nothing." Logan saw the disbelief in her expression. "Some stuff that Lydecker gave me a while back and I'm trying to find it because it might help."  
  
"Help with what?" Max asked curiously.  
  
"Well, with White." Logan informed. "After Manticore burned down he gave me a whole heap of papers. I think that White and Renfro were part of the same deal. If I can prove it then I'll do a ha. What?" He trailed off when he saw Max waving her arms around signaling for him to stop.  
  
"Um," Max stuck her head out the door and mumble for Trent to come and meet Logan and then stuck her head but in again. "Logan this is Trent, Trent, Logan."  
  
"Nice to meet you." Trent said extending a hand to Logan.  
  
"Max," Logan said taking Trent's hand but still looking at her, "it I had known that I was having visitors I would have baked a cake."  
  
"Get the stick out of your ass Logan." She snapped at him.  
  
"I'm sorry." Trent spoke up sensing the tension between the two of them.  
  
"No that's okay." Logan said turning back to his scattered papers.  
  
"Trent's looking for a job. Got anything available?" Max asked.  
  
"Are you really?" Logan said surprised that his girlfriend was now getting other people jobs.  
  
"Um, yes, I guess." Trent replied nervously.  
  
"Logan's a journalist." Max stated.  
  
"Really?" It was Trent's turn to be amazed.  
  
"Ah, yeah." Logan confirmed.  
  
"Who do you work for?" Trent asked totally interested.  
  
"Um," Logan started.  
  
"He works for Eyes Only." Max finished.  
  
"You work for Eyes Only?" Trent said is disbelief.  
  
"Yeah." Logan said seeing that this was heading for disaster.  
  
"Have you ever met him? What's he like?" Trent was getting over exited.  
  
"He's nice I guess." Logan said giving Max an evil eye as she tried to hold back her laughter.  
  
Max's pager sounded. "It's Original Cindy, can I use you're phone?"  
  
"Yes." Logan sighed.  
  
*phone conversation*  
  
"Max?" Cindy asked picking up the phone at Jam Pony.  
  
"What up?" Max asked.  
  
"Oh my God, Sketchy and Riggy were playing and Normal stepped in to stop them and Sketch broke his jaw. We had to call an ambulance but as they were loading him in Normal managed to put me in charge and fire Sketch." Cindy said in one breath.  
  
Max laughed. "Is Riggy okay?"  
  
"Yeah, Riggy's all cool but Sketch is hangin around like a dead lump. Get back here, it's our first office party." Cindy hung up the phone.  
  
*end phone conversation*  
  
Max laughed and shook her head slightly. "Trent, we gotta go. Normal's got a broken jaw and we have to get back to Jam Pony and do as little work as possible."  
  
"Can we talk more later?" Trent asked Logan as Max dragged him by the collar outside.  
  
"Sure." Logan answered.  
  
"I'll be back." Max yelled back into Logan.  
  
"Okay." He said closing his front door.  
  
~*  
  
"Where's Alec?" Max asked noticing the absence of her friend.  
  
"He didn't come to work today." Cindy informed her.  
  
"Okay, why not?" Max asked grabbing Cindy's arm as she walked past.  
  
"Oh," Cindy teased her, "why do you care?"  
  
"I don't!" Max shrugged.  
  
~*  
  
Logan stared at the clock. Max said she'd be back, she didn't necessarily say when. "Next week, tomorrow, never."  
  
"Now." Max whispered making her presence known. "Logan, I was going to ask today but because Trent was with me I decided that I should making his meeting you for the first time should probably be a pleasant experience. Did you know that Asha was the killer?"  
  
"Max." Logan stared at the floor and was trying to think about how he should word his answer.  
  
"Don't Max me!" Max tried not to raise her voice. "Just tell me the truth."  
  
"In a way, yes." He answered trying to judge her next move.  
  
"You knew that Asha was trying to kill me and you didn't tell me?" Max started to lose her temper. "What kind of boyfriend does something like that?"  
  
"Hey," Logan started yelling, "I couldn't say anything until I was sure."  
  
"No, instead you waited until I was half dead on the floor before you decided to do anything about it." Max yelled back at him.  
  
"Asha and the S1W are valued informants. I had already jeopardized that when I asked if S1W was involved." Logan defended himself.  
  
"I so now your little informant is more important than my life?" Max started to tear up not wanting to believe the words coming out of her own mouth.  
  
"It's not even like that." Logan said quietly knowing that this was a fight that he wouldn't win.  
  
"Then how about you tell me what it is like?" Max said bitterly.  
  
"Matt called me and said that the guy that saw the murder said the murderer had a broken arm." Logan explained. "I thought of Asha first but I couldn't believe it. Max, some one like you should understand."  
  
"Don't you dare tell me what I'm like." Max threatened and started pacing around the room. "I've been running around doing shit for you for the past three years. When I got back from Manticore I would have just gone back to my normal little worthless life if it weren't for you! I cared about you, that's why I came back. And this is how you treat me for caring about you. Letting your other girlfriend try to kill me."  
  
"That's not fair!" Logan responded letting his anger get the better of him. "If you didn't want to come back then you shouldn't have. It would have been better for everybody if you didn't."  
  
"Then maybe I'll go away now!" Max screamed.  
  
"Please do!" Logan coached.  
  
"If I could touch you, I'd slap you to Australia." Max stormed out of the room slamming the door and loud she could muster.  
  
~*  
  
Alec stared at the ceiling, the TV had gone off when the rain started. There wasn't anything wrong with the city's power supply, it's just Alec liked being able to listen to the rain fall on the street.  
  
There was a light knock at the door, light but loud enough to bring Alec out of his trance to answer it.  
  
He swung the door open to reveal a soaked to the bone, shaking Max with tears streaming down her face. Alec didn't make any stupid remarks or ask any questions, he just pulled Max into his arms and let her cry.  
  
Max didn't know what she was doing at Alec's or how she got there, something inside her just made head there. "I didn't know where else to go." Max sobbed.  
  
"It's okay." Alec tried to smooth out her wet hair and kissed her gently on the forehead.  
  
Max looked up into Alec's eyes, she leaned into his strong arms and let him surround her. For the first time in a while she felt like she was missing something. Max placed her right hand on Alec's face and kissed him.  
  
Alec had never felt like this when Max was around. She really only had the ability to throw insults at him and make him feel reasonably uncomfortable. He kissed her back.  
  
In moments their kisses turned from innocent to passionate. Max ran both hands through his hair and he scooped her into his arms.  
  
Max jumped up and wrapped her legs around him and let him carry her into his bedroom.  
  
They tumbled into Alec's bed and shook of their garments. 


	8. Decisions

When Alec blinked his eyes open, the morning sun landed directly in them stinging them. He let out a soft moan and rolled over to where the bed was going cold next to him. Thoughts about the previous night plagued his memory. He remembered sitting in his lounge patiently listening to the rain when Max, an upset and crying Max knock on his door and took him to bed.  
  
Alec could feel the mistake swimming inside of him. He took advantage of her, that's why she wasn't there now, because she realized he had used her.  
  
Alec got up and slowly made his way into the kitchen. He scratched his head and reached into the fridge for the carton of milk.  
  
Max entered the room and stopped frozen in her tracks. She stared at him and said, "I was sure that I'd get another five minutes."  
  
"You don't have to go." Alec put the milk on his table and walked toward her.  
  
Max took a step backwards and held up an arm to stop his movement. "No, just don't, not now. We can talk about this later but right now I need to think things through. Don't say anything to anyone. Please."  
  
"If that's what you want." Alec said bitterly, letting Max confirm his initial thought.  
  
"What I think you should do, is put on some pants." Max grabbed her jacket from it's landing spot on Alec's floor and headed out the door.  
  
Alec just stood completely naked in the middle of his own lounge room. He had stood naked in just about every part of his apartment and this one time Max just happened to be using his bathroom and caught him.  
  
~*  
  
Max climbed the stairs to her apartment and quietly opened the door. She wasn't expecting Cindy to already be up and about.  
  
"Hey Max." Cindy said calmly making Max jump.  
  
She whirled around to face Cindy and a face that she hadn't seen in sometime. "Kendra?" Max asked in disbelief at the face of her friend.  
  
"Hello." Kendra embraced Max in a hug. "What have you been doing? Well apart from getting your transgenic ass into trouble?"  
  
Max looked at her quite alarmed. "What?"  
  
"Oh, don't worry." Kendra laughed. "I completely understand."  
  
Max sighed and took a seat with them. "So what ya doing? Last we heard from you was a post card from New York."  
  
"New York is the most fabulous city in this entire country." She informed them. "We can talk all about that later. What have you two been doing? Well I know all about Cindy, we've been talking most of the night."  
  
"Yeah, Boo. Where ya been at?" Cindy took a sip of her coffee and waited for Max to answer.  
  
"I was helping Alec with something." Max came up with a lie that was the closest to the truth as she could get.  
  
"What's with that boy now?" Cindy shook her head.  
  
"Whose Alec?" Kendra expressed great interest.  
  
"Boy's got a crush on our Max here." Cindy told her.  
  
"He's no one." Max threw in. "He wanted me to look at some stuff with him and I couldn't say know because Alec is the kind of person who is likely to get himself killed or caught."  
  
"You people are so naughty." Kendra laughed. "Hey Max, maybe later you and your boy can show me some moves."  
  
Max frowned, "He's not my boy and how did you know that he was a transgenic?"  
  
"I didn't, you just told me." Kendra smiled drawing Max's attention.  
  
"What did your crazy cop boyfriend teach you?" Cindy asked quite intrigued.  
  
"The art of deception." Kendra said mischievously.  
  
The three of them laughed so hard and talked so much that they forgot that Max and Cindy were meant to go to work.  
  
~*  
  
"Bip, bip, bip!" Normal's voice rang. He had white bandages holding his jaw in place and had to drink his food through a straw but still managed to nag everyone.  
  
Cindy and Max walked in unsure of how late they actually were.  
  
"Ah, ah, you're late." Normal looked at his watch and started his interrogation.  
  
"Only by like five minutes." Max tried to reason with him.  
  
Normal looked at his watch again. "Twenty-five minutes and forty-eight seconds.  
  
"What you're timing us now?" Max asked horrified.  
  
"No, just you." He pointed directly at Max. "If you're running late again, you may have to think about getting another job." Normal turned and left them to watch his back in awe.  
  
"What's his dealio?" Max asked confused.  
  
"He's just mad cause Sketchy mangled his face." Cindy suggested.  
  
"Doesn't mean he has to take it out on me." Max said in her matter-o-factly tone.  
  
Both girls shrugged at each other and made their way to the lockers.  
  
~*  
  
"Knock, knock, anybody home?" Alec called entering Logan's apartment.  
  
"Yep." Logan stuck his head out of his office. "To what do I owe this unexpected surprise?"  
  
"Well I was wondering what was up with Max?" Alec asked Logan, leaning against the table in the center of the room.  
  
"Why?" Logan asked, " What do you know?"  
  
"I know nothing, that's why I'm asking you." Alec replied picking up a piece of paper from the table and pretending to read it.  
  
"How is it that, this working day started half an hour ago and you already know that something's up with her." Logan asked suspiciously.  
  
"I haven't spoken to her today." Alec informed him. "She was at my place last night, balling her eyes out saying things like she had no where else to go. Wanna tell me what you guys were fighting about?"  
  
"Why do you assume that I had anything to do with it?" Logan challenged him.  
  
"Cause she came crying to me and not you, that makes you and her fighting." Alec tested his logic.  
  
"I wasn't thinking and I may have said some things that I didn't mean." Logan gave in.  
  
"Care to elaborate?" Alec questioned.  
  
"I don't see how this is any of your business." Logan stated.  
  
"When a friend of mine comes crying to me in the middle of the night, I make it my business." Alec said aiming for calm tone but finding a threatening one instead.  
  
"What are you going to do about it?" Logan challenged him again.  
  
"Why don't you just tell me and save me the trouble of beating your ass?" Alec was now standing inches away from him ready to strike him at any movement.  
  
"What happened." Logan asked backing off and sitting on the couch.  
  
"What?" Alec asked taken by surprise.  
  
"What happened when Max showed up on your door step?" Logan leaned back into the chair already expecting the worse.  
  
"She cried herself to sleep. She was so upset that she couldn't talk properly so I just let her go. She slept on the couch and when I go up this morning she was gone." Alec spoke as quickly as he could get his mind to come up with a lie.  
  
"Right." Logan said not really believing it but taking his word anyway.  
  
"So what happened?" Alec asked again.  
  
"Why don't you ask Max?" Logan suggested.  
  
"Cause, I'm asking you." Alec joined Logan on the couch and waited for an answer.  
  
~*  
  
"Boo, you okay?" Cindy asked munching on a carrot that they managed to pick up on their way through the market.  
  
"Just thinking." Max replied picking up a grapefruit.  
  
*Flashback*  
  
"When is your birthday anyway?" Logan's voice asked.  
  
"I have no clue." She replied. "Manticore wasn't big on that sort of thing. When's yours?"  
  
"November eleven." Logan responded directly.  
  
"I got you an early present." Max smiled and handed him a brown paper bag.  
  
Logan looked at her strangely and rolled the contents of the bag onto his hand. "A grapefruit!" Logan looked shocked and surprised. "Haven't seen one of these in a while."  
  
"They had chicken too." Max said excitedly.  
  
"Wow, we must be in recovery." Logan met her excitement.  
  
*End Flashback*  
  
"Boo! Max!" Cindy was trying to get her attention. "Hello?"  
  
Max shook her head, squeezed her eyes closed and then opened them again and looked at Cindy with a blank expression.  
  
"What on earth are you thinkin bout girl? You are miles away." Cindy took the grapefruit off her and put it back in the pile of other grapefruit.  
  
"I had a fight with Logan." Max said plainly picking the grapefruit up again and paying the man at the stall.  
  
"What about?" Cindy asked sympathetically.  
  
*Flashback*  
  
"If you didn't want to come back then you shouldn't have. It would have been better for everybody if you didn't."  
  
*End Flashback*  
  
Logan's voice rang clear in her head. "He told me that it would have been better for everybody if I hadn't come back from Manticore."  
  
"Are we talking about the same Logan?" Cindy asked wide eye and confused. "Cause if I remember correctly, he wouldn't say something like that."  
  
"Well he did." Max walked calmly yet sadly next to Cindy.  
  
"Oh my." Was all Cindy could say.  
  
~*  
  
"Have you seen Max?" Alec asked Normal.  
  
"No!" Normal mumbled through clenched teeth. "Bip! Bip! Bip!"  
  
"Cindy?" Alec knew that she had heard him ask.  
  
"Ah, ah no!" She said turning on her heel and heading for her locker.  
  
"Come on Cindy." Alec ran after her.  
  
"I don't think she wants to speak to you." Cindy opened her locker and started fiddling inside.  
  
"What do you know?" Alec asked annoyed.  
  
"Oh, I know everything." Cindy waved her hand around, slammed her locker and headed over to Normal for her next run.  
  
"Damn." Alec cursed slapping a locker and leaving Jam Pony.  
  
~*  
  
Alec entered his apartment, it was dark. He had spent the afternoon looking for Max but she had seemed to have disappeared. He went to her place twice, Joshua's, Logan's again, Jam Pony and Crash before her gave up and went home.  
  
He flicked on the light, peeled off his jacket, turned and got the fright of his life. "Max! I've spent the best part of the day looking for you."  
  
"What the evening at Crash hitting on every set of breasts that walked in the door?" Max asked smartly but still remaining quiet. "Why were you looking for me?"  
  
"I wanted to say I'm sorry." Alec crossed the room to her.  
  
"For what?" She smiled slightly, letting him take her hands.  
  
"For everything." He whispered leaning down to kiss her.  
  
She pulled free from him and stood about two meters away. "That's not talking."  
  
"You want to talk?" Alec asked himself rather than her. "I can do that."  
  
"I don't want you to talk, I want you to listen." Max stated knowing that she had him exactly where she wanted him.  
  
"Listening, even better." Alec tried to joke but quickly saw that Max wasn't in the mood. He sat on the couch, got comfortable and made a gesture for her to join him. "I can listen, I'm really good at listening."  
  
"Good!" Max took a seat next to him and looked at him seriously. "Last night was my fault. I wasn't thinking straight. Logan and I had a fight and I needed someone who understood me and where I came from. I, we, came from hell, Logan doesn't understand that and he never will. I'm really sorry for putting you in that position. It won't happen again."  
  
"Max," Alec stopped her as she was getting up to leave, "what if I want it to happen again?"  
  
Max smiled at him, she blinked a couple of times and considered the offer. "Are you serious?"  
  
"Yep." Alec nodded. He reached out and took her hand.  
  
She looked at their tangled fingers and let him pull her into his lap. She sat comfortably straddling his lap.  
  
He ran his fingers tenderly through her hair, kissing her neck.  
  
Thoughts moved too fast through her head to comprehend. She returned his gentle kisses and stroked chest. She could feel his breath on her neck. He somehow made her feel alive inside.  
  
~*  
  
Max woke up the next morning with her head on Alec's bare chest and his hand resting on her shoulder. She propped herself up on her elbows and looked at his sleeping face. She bit her bottom lip, she just couldn't help herself, she smiled and leant forward kissing his lips.  
  
Alec opened his eyes and looked at a beaming Max smiling at him. He ran his fingers through her hair, and kissed her. "Let's call in sick." Alec said sleepily spying the alarm clock with the time printed on it.  
  
"Normal's gonna fire me if I'm late." Max stated but made no effort to get up. She started to draw circles on his chest with her finger.  
  
"I have to ask you something." Alec got serious, he moved her face so he was looking directly into her eyes.  
  
"What is it?" Max asked curiously.  
  
"What was with the 'don't tell anyone' speech yesterday, when you went out and told Cindy?" Alec asked giving her a looked of suspicion.  
  
"Cindy?" Max asked surprised and amused. "I didn't tell her a thing! She has no idea."  
  
"Then how come she said to me that she knew every thing?" Alec asked confused.  
  
"Okay, firstly, she learnt this thing off Kendra that morning to get people to tell you stuff by pretending that you know when you don't really know. Secondly, no one pulls the wool over Original Cindy's eyes!"  
  
Max and Alec laughed at the statement. The both knew that it was true but decided to see how long they could keep their relationship from their friends for.  
  
"This is nasty." Max laughed.  
  
"But so fun!" Alec said with an evil grin. He then got up and proceeded to jump on the bed.  
  
Max laughed as Alec twirled the sheet and jumped up and down. She reached up and grabbed him pulling him close to her and kissing him. "Let's go to work." She said plainly, getting out of the bed and heading for the bathroom.  
  
Alec stopped his excited mood and lay motionless on the bed. "Do we really have to?" He asked whimpering. He looked at Max who was standing in the doorway. She motioned for him to join her. Alec jumped up and ran after her. 


	9. Day 1 fights

DAY 1:  
  
Max knew that trying to hide things from people wasn't only cruel but when they found out they asked all sorts of complicated questions. She could have pinned it coming.  
  
It started when she and Alec were at work about two days after they decided to start seeing each other on purpose. Cindy was on a run. They were left alone together amongst the lockers.  
  
"Hey." Alec greeted dropping his bag on the floor. "It's starting to warm up." He stated opening his locker and fishing around for one of his other shirts to change into.  
  
"I don't know about you but it's pretty hot where I'm standing." Max said with a cheeky look on her face, leaning against the lockers and fanning herself with her hand.  
  
Alec smiled and shook his head slightly. "You know, you can be very naughty some times." He pulled his shirt off and began to pull the next one on.  
  
Max grabbed his arm with the shirt half way over his head and pulled it off again. She wrapped her arms around his neck and started kissing him. Getting Alec started was good cause he held on all-day and preformed better later. Max giggled to herself about the thought.  
  
'She wearing a button up shirt.' He admired. He pushed her back against the lockers and in one swift movement pulled the buttons open to reveal Max's black bra.  
  
She blushed slightly, giggled and kept kissing him.  
  
Who knows where their passionate kissing would have lead if Normal hadn't walked around the corner at the moment? "Oh my God." He yelled protecting his eyes and turning to walk back to his desk.  
  
Cindy walked in the room in just enough time to see Normal race back to his desk disgusted, Alec run after him trying to pull on a shirt and Max after Alec doing up buttons. "What the hell?" She asked herself quietly.  
  
"I said no office fraternizing." Normal announced when they both arrived at his desk. "Plus didn't you two hate each other?" He asked pointing a finger at the both of them.  
  
Max and Alec looked from Normal to each other and back to Normal and at the same time said, MAX: "It's not what you think." ALEC: "She was helping me."  
  
Normal looked at the two of them as they looked at each other with panicked expressions. "What? Helping with what?" Normal was confused.  
  
MAX: "Itchy back." ALEC: "My belt buckle." They both said in unison again and then gave each other and evil look.  
  
"She was helping with your belt buckle alright, she would have help you right out of your pants." Normal responded to the jumble mess of word he received as an answer.  
  
"What the hell is going on here?" Cindy arrived at the desk to join the strange conversation. She handed Normal her clipboard and looked to Max for answers.  
  
Normal got in before Max even got the chance to respond to the look. "These two seem to find it fun to waste valuable business time by."  
  
"Talking about fly fishing." Alec interrupted him, giving Max a smart look in return for her 'god, you're an idiot' look.  
  
"And that has what to do with pants?" Cindy asked getting more confused every second.  
  
"Alec nearly ripped his pants showing me." Max made up quickly. She smiled sweetly when Alec gave her a 'humiliate me why don't you' look.  
  
"They were about to christen the lockers." Normal said plainly gaining annoyed and betrayed looks from Max and Alec.  
  
Cindy opened her eyes wide and her mouth dropped down. She looked at Max and Alec who looked like they were about to beat each other and then beat Normal. Then Cindy shook her head and remembered something. "Normal, Sketchy and Maddie christened the lockers five years ago."  
  
That broke the atmosphere. Max and Alec started laughing and were soon joined by Cindy who for the moment had forgot about her recent discovery, but Normal just rolled his eyes and turned away from them.  
  
~*  
  
It seemed to be smokers' night at Crash. Max nearly fell over at the sight of the clouded room. She quickly saw her crew and worked her way over to them. "Wass up?" She asked on arrival and winked at Alec.  
  
"Is all good, Boo. Wass up wit you?" Cindy was slurred and happy, it just meant that Sketchy had brought the weed.  
  
"Yeah you know." Max made eyes at Alec as he sat across the table. "Alec can I ask you something?" She turned and walked away waiting for him to follow her.  
  
Alec did get up and follow her across the room where they proceeded to have what appeared to Cindy as a fight.  
  
Cindy observed through squinted eyes as they made hand gestures and yelled and weird facial expressions. "What do you call that?" She asked a very stoned Sketchy.  
  
Sketchy looked at Max and Alec, tilted his head, said, "Lovers tiff, "and fell on the floor.  
  
"True my brother, true." Cindy took a sip of beer and watched intently. She knew that Sketchy was unconscious on the floor but didn't have the co- ordination to pick him up so just left him there.  
  
She watched as Alec got the last word in and headed for the Crash exit and as Max ran after him.  
  
"Alec I'm sorry. I'm just kind of upset about this." Max grabbed his arm and held his hands. Tears had started to stream down her face as she pleaded through her expression. "I need you."  
  
"I'm sorry but I don't know what I'm meant to do. I can't help. I'd be very bad at it." He tried to pull away from her but her grip stayed tight around his hands.  
  
"Don't leave me with this!" She begged him. "This is your responsibility too!"  
  
"And I'll handle it just give me some time." Alec finally managed to pull free from her. "Please just give me some time to think." He turned and left Crash and Max without looking back.  
  
~*  
  
Logan's apartment was dark and Max didn't think he would be home. She walked into the main living room where she saw a figure sitting on the couch, she turned and flicked on the light.  
  
Logan looked at her with a sad face. He hadn't been crying but looked as though he was about to start at any second.  
  
"Are you okay?" Max asked sitting on the coffee table in front of him.  
  
He didn't say anything he just nodded his head and pulled himself to his feet.  
  
"My god what happened?" Max followed him as he walked to his office.  
  
"Loss in the family." Logan replied in a quiet and calm tone. He sat at his computer and began to open files and type away at stuff.  
  
"I'm so sorry." Max really did feel sorry for him. "Anybody that you were close to?" She wished that she had never met Vogelsang so Zack would have never killed him. So Zack wouldn't get taken to Manticore and accidentally reveal where the others were. So Renfro wouldn't have caught Tinga and they wouldn't have to go in and destroy the place. So she wouldn't have been caught and given the stupid virus to kill Logan with.  
  
"Yes and no." Logan replied still with a very sad tone. "We were close a long time ago and sort of drifted apart."  
  
"That's sad." Max wanted so bad to stop his pain. "I sorry for yelling at you about Asha. It was wrong, all you did is what you thought was right and I can't hold that against you."  
  
Logan didn't reply. He was glad that Max had decided to speak to him but couldn't help hating her for everything that had happened. He was still so in love with her that it hurt. The funeral was in five days and he had to save his strength to be able to deal with it.  
  
"On the bright side," Max began, "at least you're not pregnant and the person who got you there didn't just walk out on you."  
  
Logan forgot all about his dead relative at that point and focused on Max. "What?" He was shocked. "You're pregnant?"  
  
"Yeah." She replied quietly. "I know that I'm not ready for this. You're the first person that I've told, well apart from Alec but he has to know, it's his kid."  
  
"I cannot believe what I'm hearing." Logan stood and walked like a zombie into the kitchen and got out a bottle of previously opened wine, popped the cork out and began sculling the bottle.  
  
Max who had followed him snatched the bottle out of his hand. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"  
  
"You're pregnant!" He repeated as though to inform her for the first time.  
  
Max rolled her eyes. "Thanks, I didn't know that!" She threw the bottle into a wall and broke down crying.  
  
Logan didn't know what he should do. He couldn't show any sympathy for her, not just because of the virus but because he didn't feel any. He couldn't say a single thing either so he just walked into his bedroom and slammed the door, leaving the red wine to stain the floor and Max to sob in the middle of his kitchen.  
  
~*  
  
Alec knew the world was coming to an end. His girlfriend was now pregnant. "One transgenic plus one transgenic equals one disaster." He whispered into the darkness.  
  
"Maybe," Was the response he got, "but disasters can be fixed."  
  
Alec smiled to himself. "Piss off Lydecker." He moaned through his now drunken state.  
  
"You really were just taking her for a joy ride, weren't you?" Lydecker asked sitting on the floor next to Alec.  
  
"No." Alec replied quietly.  
  
"You were!" Deck raised his voice slightly.  
  
"I did not!" Alec screamed and pinned Lydecker against a wall. "I love her!" He backed down once he realized what he had said. It was the first time that he had ever admitted to anyone about how he felt.  
  
"Right." Lydecker scoffed.  
  
"I do." He repeated. "I do love her."  
  
"Then fix your so called disaster and get over it." Deck advised, climbed to his feet and left Alec to once again whisper to himself in the dark.  
  
~*  
  
Cindy found herself once again all alone in a quiet apartment. Max was not home nor was she anywhere to be seen after she left Crash. Cindy had known that something was very wrong. She wasn't stupid, she knew that Max and Alec were sleeping together. She just didn't say anything incase it was serious and was appalled by them trying to hide it from her.  
  
Cindy was walking from the bathroom to her bedroom to get into bed when Max walked in the door. Her face was red from the tears. "God boo!" Cindy said immediately rushing to comfort her friend. "What's wrong. Did Alec hurt you cause I'll beat him up."  
  
Max shook her head and began to fight off a fresh batch of tears. She rested her head on Cindy's shoulder.  
  
Cindy sighed. "That's good cause that boy would have whipped my ass." She tried a hand at light humor and got Max to smile. "What happened to make you so sad?"  
  
"Everything's gone wrong Cindy." She cried putting her hands to her face and started to sob. "Logan and I were fighting and me and Alec got together and now me and Logan are fighting again and I'm pregnant and Alec's scared and won't talk to me."  
  
"Oh god." Cindy processed the jumbled mess. "You're really pregnant?"  
  
"Why does every body ask me that. Of course I am. I checked like six times, I'm definitely pregnant." Max pulled free from Cindy's grasp paced around a bit and finally collapsed on the sofa.  
  
"Well on a brighter side I think you win a award for the most 'ands' used in one sentence." Cindy laughed gaining a small laugh from Max.  
  
~*  
  
Max planned on avoiding the rest of the world for the rest of her natural life. She refused to go to work the next day and ended up spending the day at Joshua's place helping him paint 'Joshua four hundred and twenty-eight'.  
  
"Nice one big fella." Max commented as he signed it.  
  
"Thanks little fella." Joshua replied with great enthusiasm. Joshua looked at Max as a tear slid down her face. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing." Max replied and quickly wiped the tears away.  
  
Joshua caught her in an embrace and hugged her tightly. "What's wrong little fella?" He coached, cutting off Max's air supply.  
  
Max tried to push him away but his tight grip wouldn't let up so Max just enjoyed getting almost crushed to death. "There's going to be a little, little fella." Max told him gaining a confused look from Joshua. "I'm going to have a little baby." She considered the thought herself for the first time she found out and liked the idea of having a baby.  
  
"Little, little fella?" Joshua considered it. "Cool. Baby." Joshua laughed.  
  
"Yeah," Max lightened up and smiled, "Baby." 


	10. Day 2 avoidance and realizations

DAY 2:  
  
"Okay so now he's just avoiding me." Max complained leaning against the locker next to the one that Cindy was rifling through.  
  
"Now what ever gives you that impression?" Cindy asked getting frustrated with her belongings.  
  
"He won't call, he won't talk to me, when I go round there he pretends that I'm not there and continues to do what ever it is that he does these days." Max responded giving Cindy a strange look when a purple G-string was tossed over her shoulder. "What exactly are you looking for?" She asked peering over her shoulder into the locker.  
  
"A hiding place." Cindy replied taking a bag out of the locker and placing it on the floor carefully. When she spied Max's confused look she continued, "I got this number from this chick the other day when I was on a run and I said that I'd call her but I lost the number."  
  
"Is this the one that you showed me with the blonde hair and the cute ass?" Max mocked Cindy and she threw a towel at her.  
  
"Yes that would be the one." Cindy stated giving Max a 'matter-o-factly' expression.  
  
"33470098427561." Max said walking off towards Normal's desk.  
  
"Wait." Cindy stopped emptying her locker and ran after Max. "How did you remember." She stopped just in time to realize the stupid question. "Right."  
  
"I suppose you'll be wanting maternity leave then." Normal said it more like it was a statement than a question. "We can't pay you cause we're broke but there'll be a job for you if you chose to come back." Normal was trying to be nice.  
  
"Thanks Normal but how did you know that?" Max asked but felt that she already knew the answer.  
  
"Alec was in here drunk as all getto, falling all over the place, going on about he was going to be a dad and that he had all kinds of different responsibilities now." Normal informed. "He seemed kinda happy."  
  
"Alec happy? That's a new one." Max rolled her eyes, "I wish that's how he really felt."  
  
"Max every thing will turn out alright." Cindy put a hand on her shoulder. "I promise, now what was that number again?"  
  
Max smiled and let out a small laugh.  
  
~*  
  
*Flashback*  
  
"Max!" Maria screamed as her father dragged her into another room for a sever beating. "Maxie, stay away!"  
  
Max watched helplessly as Maria fought him but was beaten down. She knew that she would have to get away.  
  
Max decided that it would be best if she didn't look back at the place that she had called home after she had left Manticore. She pulled on the bag that housed her clothes and walked in to the cold streets.  
  
*End Flashback*  
  
Max sat up straight in bed. Bed had become a habit of hers when it was dark and boring, tonight she had fallen asleep.  
  
She climbed out of bed and felt an unexpected chill echo through her body. She looked out her window at the snow-covered streets. "It snows here?" She asked herself racing into Cindy's room to wake her.  
  
"Max," Cindy groaned as she slowly flicked her eyes open, "piss off!" She rolled over and attempted to go back to sleep.  
  
"Cindy, it's snowing." She whispered quietly.  
  
Cindy sat up and stared at her. "It does snow in Seattle." She stated giving her a confused look, like her friend may have gone mad.  
  
"Fine, I'll show you." Max jumped up and ran to the window, she pushed it open and let the snow fly inside.  
  
Cindy couldn't believe her own eyes. "Wow!" She jumped out of bed, pulled on her robe and ran of her apartment.  
  
Max ran after her. They were banging on doors and waking people up, yelling to them to come outside into the snow and enjoy themselves.  
  
Several people jumped up and followed them to the street others made rude comments and went back to bed.  
  
~*  
  
Alec was leaving Crash and his troubles with a pretty blond when the snow had begun to fall. He quickly sobered up and knew that this had been sent for him.  
  
He jumped on his bike and headed quickly to Max's place. He knew where he wanted to be and why.  
  
~*  
  
Logan couldn't sleep. He wanted forgiveness. He felt weird like he should be in a church or something at that moment.  
  
He climbed out of bed and got dressed in an old pair of jeans and a woolen jumper, he pulled a coat over that and headed for his car.  
  
A shadow moved out of the corner of his eye and he spun to see who it was. "Asha." He said relieved and then remembered that this was the woman who was a former or possibly a current killer.  
  
"Don't get too freaked out. I'm not going to hurt you." She stepped out of the shadows to face him. "I still watch you people. I know that I probably shouldn't incase they notice and try to kill me."  
  
"I wouldn't put it past Alec to entertain the idea of revenge." Logan gave his opinion and leant against the bonnet of his car.  
  
Asha joined him and folded her arms. "I saw them, Max and Alec, down at the wharf, they seem pretty comfortable with each other these days."  
  
"Yeah well, she's having his baby." Logan informed her. She had managed to miss all the goss since she decided to kill and go into hiding.  
  
"Oh really?" Asha was quite surprised, some where inside she knew that that would end up happening but didn't really believe it.  
  
"I can't even count the hours that I secretly hoped that it would be born deformed and ugly." Logan smiled at his own stupidity. He really wanted to cry.  
  
"Don't worry." She informed him. "White had some great plans for them and their baby." She stood and began to walk away.  
  
"Asha." He stopped her. "You're not still working for him are you?" Logan's heart stopped and waited for her answer.  
  
"Of course, I have a six year contract." She giggled. "Then I either sign up for another six year or go away with out vocal cords."  
  
"Yuck." Logan shook his head in disgust but when he looked up Asha's face was again calm but slightly sad.  
  
"White understands me." She said quietly. "Nobody knows how it feels to be in a position like this, in love with someone who doesn't feel the same way. He looks after me and listens to me. He cares."  
  
"He doesn't care." Logan objected. "He just wants you to give him what he wants and he'll let you live."  
  
"You don't understand!" She yelled. "You don't see what's right in front of you, instead you go for something that you can't have." She turned and started to leave.  
  
"I love Max." He said to her back. "Nothing will ever change that. Do what you want, I don't care, but if you hurt Max, don't think about coming near me again because I'll kill you."  
  
"You say that now, but you'll be thanking me later." Asha said without facing him and walked off.  
  
Logan knew that he had to warn her. He got into his car and started the engine and sped off to Max's place.  
  
~*  
  
The air was cool as Max and the people from her building and surrounding buildings played in the snow and two o'clock in the morning.  
  
Max a Cindy engaged in a snowball fight with the new neighbor that they hadn't yet had the chance to meet.  
  
Max had never laughed so hard as when Alec pulled up on his motor cycle and was pelted with snowballs from the people enjoying the first snow.  
  
"Ah," he jumped off his bike and tried to protect himself from the flying snow. "Max." He called out into the crowd of laughing people.  
  
"Alec." Cindy jumped in front of him and threw a snowball right into his face. "Isn't this fun?"  
  
"Yeah, really fun." Alec said sarcastically wiping the snow off his face. "Where's Max?"  
  
"I don't know." Cindy looked around her for Max but couldn't see her. When she turned to face him again he rubbed snow all over her face and she screamed. Alec picked her up and dropped her into the soft snow, he was laughing with the rest of the people now. "Tell me where she is."  
  
"I honestly don't know." Cindy laughed. "Can you please get off me?"  
  
"It looks like you're trying to force yourself on this lady." Max stood over the now soaking Cindy and Alec with her hands on her hips.  
  
"Well I was just you know, getting to know her a little better." He shrugged and climbed off Cindy. "Are you okay mam?" He asked politely making Cindy roll her eyes.  
  
"Yea. Original Cindy's always aiight." She stood, shook her wet clothes and ran off to join one of the other neighbor's planning a full on snowball fight.  
  
Alec and Max watched her run off to join the fun. The both laughed at the entertainment before turning to face each other.  
  
"I'm sorry." He said and reached out his hand for hers. "I should have been more supportive, but I didn't know how to react, I've never been faced with a situation before. Please forgive me. I screwed up."  
  
Max's eyes started to tear. She looked at Alec's pleading eyes and realized that she felt much more for him than she first knew. "You know what, you did screw up but I am going to forgive you because I love you."  
  
Alec face lightened, he wiped a tear from Max's cheek and cupped her chin in his hand. "You love me?" He asked seriously. "You love me to spite all my annoying imperfections?"  
  
Max nodded slightly letting her tears flow freely now. "I really do and I want to be with you, no matter what. No matter how many times you screw up, I won't care because I love you and that's it."  
  
"I love you." He said sincerely and hugged her tight. "Max, we're having a baby." He reminded her.  
  
She nodded, smiled and cried more. "Yeah, we are. I'm scared."  
  
"I'm scared too." Alec held her shoulders and spoke directly to her. "I care about you a lot and I'm ready to do whatever you want to do."  
  
"I don't know Alec. I think I want him." She fell into his arms and sobbed.  
  
"You think that you want him?" Alec asked shocked. "You didn't want this child."  
  
"God, it's not like that." Max pushed away from him. "I was scared and unsure, I still am, I wasn't sure what to do and didn't know if I had you're support or not."  
  
"Now you know. What do you want?" He said softly holding his breath waiting for the answer.  
  
Max stood still and looked at the now muddy snow lying on the ground for a moment. "Let's have a baby." She whispered then smiled at him.  
  
Alec scooped her into his arms and spun her around. He then lowered her to the ground and kissed her.  
  
Logan watched them from his car. He knew that they were happy together and that maybe it was time for him to really let her go. As sad as he felt about letting her go, he still had to tell her that Asha was on the war path and that her life was in danger.  
  
He climbed out of his car with a sigh and headed through the people having a snowball fight to where Max and Alec were starting to plan their family. 


	11. Day 3 With love, mommy

A/N: Okay I'm back with this story, it was dragging and got a bit boring to write but I've tried my hand at it again. Please be shocked, I'd like it much if you were.  
  
Day 4:  
  
Alec may as well have moved in with Max and Cindy cause he was staying there so much that Cindy wanted to move out.  
  
"I can't take anymore of this!" Cindy yelled walking into Max's room where she and Alec were talking about stuff. In her hand Cindy had a pair of boxer shorts with little naked cupids on them shooting arrows. "You're a pig Alec and if you don't start cleaning up after yourself I'm gonna throw everything that's outta place, out the window, got it?"  
  
"Hey Cindy, calm down, there just a pair of shorts." He replied, they would have been picked up later.  
  
To make her point, Cindy walked over to Max's window, pulled it open and threw the boxers out into the melting snow.  
  
"What are you doing?" Alec yelled jumping up, running to the window and peering down at the soggy, wet silk mess that were his boxers.  
  
"Told ya." She spun and walked out of the room leaving Alec with a very amused Max.  
  
"Serves yourself right you know, nobody messes with Cindy." She pointed a finger at him and started laughing.  
  
"This isn't funny," Alec said still looking at the boxers, "They were my favorite pair." That statement had Max laughing so hard she had to grip her sides they hurt much. "You think it's funny? I'll teach you!" He ran and jumped on the bed wrestling her.  
  
~*  
  
"Are you ready?" A dark figure paced around a deserted warehouse giving instructions and asking questions to the young blond woman who stood across the room.  
  
"I was born ready," She stated standing in an army position.  
  
"Good," The figure spoke again, "I don't want a kill, I want a capture. That's the way it's always been, if you kill 452, I'll kill you. Do you understand?"  
  
"Yeas sir," The blond girl replied still standing straight in her army position.  
  
"Then go, wound her if you must but if you kill, so help you." Without another word the dark figure turned and left.  
  
Asha finally relaxed when she knew that he was gone, he scared her more than anything she had ever done in her life and that was a lot. She had to capture Max, but how? She was so slippery and difficult to catch. But she had her weaknesses, just like everyone else and Asha knew what they were.  
  
~*  
  
"Nothing stops the messenger service!" Normal told a fellow employee as Max, Cindy and Alec entered the building.  
  
"Try telling that to Frosty the Snow Man!" Cindy muttered as she pulled her gloves off.  
  
"What do you think about what Logan said?" Max asked Alec as she sat down on his lap at a table set in the lunch part of the building.  
  
"I'm not worried," Alec said wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his head on her shoulder, "why would Asha hang around? If that were me, I'd be as far away as possible."  
  
"But it's not you Alec. She's a psycho and she works for White in case you forgot." She reminded him.  
  
"No Max I didn't forget but did you think that it could be Logan makin stuff up?" Alec suggested without considering the impact of the statement.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Max stood up furious, "He wouldn't do something like that, he's not like that!"  
  
"Okay, okay," Alec just wanted her to calm down. "I'm sorry but I was just trying to look at the big picture which just so happens to start with him telling us that she's still out there and still after us. Start at the source and then work through the information."  
  
"I hate that," She said sitting back on his knee again and laying into his chest. "I just wish I knew for sure what is going on."  
  
"We all do." He stroked her back.  
  
"What do you think you're doing?" Normal's annoying voice traveled up the stair with his body and his eyes stared at them, "Your lunch break doesn't start of another four hours. Bip, bip, bip!"  
  
~*  
  
Max knocked carefully on the door to Logan's apartment and entered, "Logan, are you here?" She called, looking carefully around his apartment.  
  
Logan stopped and looked at her for a beat between walking from his kitchen to his office, "you shouldn't be here." He reminded her as her walked with her close behind him.  
  
"She knows where I live so I really don't think that it matters where I am." She said taking a seat on his desk and watching him search through folders.  
  
"That's not what I meant." He mumbled under his breath and moved away to file his work.  
  
"Then why don't you explain to me exactly what you meant cause I'm a little fuzzy!" Max said letting her temper slip.  
  
"Look, I'm not feeling to well, can you please leave?" He stopped to face her and watched her reaction.  
  
"If this is about Alec."  
  
Logan slammed his filing cabinet shut, "This may surprise you Max but not everything is about Alec! I want to be left alone and that requires you leaving!"  
  
"I don't know what the hell is wrong with you but you've changed and I don't like it!" Max said trying not to yell and failing.  
  
"Well I don't care what you think because it doesn't matter anymore. You have what you want. Please leave." He said sitting at his desk.  
  
"Fine," Max said through gritted teeth and left, slamming doors as she went.  
  
She stormed into the alleyway where she left her bike in a great temper. She kicked at the ground and slammed her bike against the wall.  
  
"Temper, temper," a voice said calmly behind her.  
  
Max spun to see who it was, but she was struck with a tazer and fell unconsciously to the ground, shaking violently.  
  
~*  
  
"Hey Cindy, do you know where Max is?" Alec asked joining Cindy at Normal's desk.  
  
"No, she said that she was going to visit Logan but that was like three hours ago." Cindy replied and headed for her bike.  
  
"At Logan's?" Alec said with apparent suspicion in his tone.  
  
"If you're worried about them having an affair, you really don't have to be." Cindy said screwing up her face at the thought.  
  
"I'm not worried." Alec said stuffing his hands in his pockets.  
  
"Come on silly, let's go home, she's probably already there resting." Cindy led the way out of Jam Pony and home to her place.  
  
~*  
  
Max wasn't at home and she wasn't at Logan's place either. Alec's mind was racing, he was trying to think of where she could be. He couldn't focus, he kept thinking of all the horrible thinks that could have happened to her.  
  
Finally he grabbed his jacket and started to search Seattle bit by bit.  
  
~*  
  
"Wake up you're boring me!" Asha yelled grabbing Max's hair and giving it a good tug.  
  
Max groggily opened her eyes, she knew that she had been drugged, she just hoped that it wasn't anything too bad. She was tied to a hard chair in a dirty warehouse in god only knew where.  
  
"Well, hello there." Asha said leaning on the arms of the chair that Max was tied to and looked into her face.  
  
"Skip the greetings and get straight to the point." Max said smiling devilish at her.  
  
Asha smiled and leaned closer, "Don't get smart with me, I'm in control of this situation."  
  
But Max's smile didn't waver, she simply arched her head back and head butted Asha in the face. "Piss off."  
  
Asha sat up patting a finger to a split and bleeding lip, "Bitch," she muttered. "You are gonna regret doing that, promise."  
  
Max watched as Asha moved over to her table of torture weapons and picked up a hand held tazer. She gritted her teeth as Asha zapped her shoulder.  
  
"I can see that this is no problem for you. Tell me, what is it that I can take from you? You've taken everything away from me." She circled Max, playing with the tazer in her hands. "First you took Logan away from me when you came back from Manticore but that wasn't enough for you, no, you had to take Alec away as well."  
  
"What do you mean?" Max said, the look of deep hate at Asha mentioning Alec's name.  
  
"He cared, he's a very passionate person, gentle." Asha smiled and still circled.  
  
"You slept with him." Max answered her own question and the bowed her head to look at her knees.  
  
"Here!" Asha announced lifting her arms into the air and walked into the center of the dust-covered floor. "It was beautiful, filthy, but beautiful."  
  
"You're crazy." Max noted more to herself than to Asha.  
  
"You stole it, I may be a crazy bitch but you're a selfish bitch. It's your turn to pay so I'm going to take something from you!" She said calmly, calmly enough to be rendered insane. She walked to Max and put the tazer to her stomach. "Say good bye Max."  
  
~*  
  
Max's bike was still in the alleyway outside Logan's place, this made Alec's heart jump, something terrible had happened to her. She had been kidnaped.  
  
He paced around hoping to think of something, anything. "Who wants Max? Who wants Max dead?" He asked himself.  
  
"Asha," a voice answered.  
  
Alec jumped, "Logan, don't sneak up on people like that, you'll get punched in the face."  
  
"Sorry, what's wrong?" Logan asked, dumping his trash in the dumpster.  
  
"Max is gone and I don't know where. I've tried calling her and paging her but she's gone. Her bike is here meaning that she must have been caught here." Alec began to pace again.  
  
"Asha's probably got her. But where?" Logan said switching direcetly into dective mode.  
  
Alec just kept pacing he thought and thought before it struck him. "Warehouse three by the warf."  
  
"What? Why?"  
  
"Just because, get in the car." He demanded running to Logan's car, jumping in the drivers seat and waiting for Logan to join him.  
  
~*  
  
Max's scream peirced the air as Logan and Alec jumped out of the car at warehouse three.  
  
Alec ran inside, leaving Logan to chase after him.  
  
The pain was blinding and Max wavered on the border of unconsciousness. Asha really did keep her promises.  
  
Asha wasn't thinking anymore, her body was on autopilot and her mind and sanity had gone for a walk. She wouldn't stop the pain, she couldn't stop herself.  
  
Alec tackeled her to the ground and started to deliver blows to her face. "You stupid bitch!" He screamed as she slapped at him to stop.  
  
Logan grab him and dragged him off her. "Don't it's not worth it! Don't sink to that level."  
  
Alec was raging with anger, he paced around the room, condemplating his next move.  
  
Asha lay on the floor and began to laugh at him. "I just took what was rightfully mine, she owed me. She gave me nothing but pain so I lifted her burden by stealing your child."  
  
Tears flowed from Alec's eyes. Asha had just killed his child and thretened the life of the woman that he loved and Logan was telling him not to be angry.  
  
Asha sat up and looked at him with a wide grin, "Believe me, one day you'll be thanking me."  
  
Alec stopped pacing and grabbed a gun from the table of torure tools and aimed it at Asha.  
  
"Alec don't do it!" Logan jumped, he didn't move from where he was standing but was in shock.  
  
Alec shrugged, "Tit for tat, right Asha?"  
  
Asha smiled, "You learn quick Alec, I'm proud of you."  
  
Alec pulled the trigger, Asha fell back on the ground, Logan sat on the floor in shock and Max made a small hiccupp noise and looked up at Alec.  
  
Alec untied Max and pulled her into his arms where she cried.  
  
To be continued.. 


End file.
